


A Shift in Time and Space

by littlesparrowkeet



Category: Naruto, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Crack Treated Seriously, Gen, Summoning, but not quirks, he still has chakra, kakashi is done with life and just wants to be a farmer, maybe more characters to come - Freeform, or somewhat seriously
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-23
Updated: 2018-03-21
Packaged: 2019-01-04 09:53:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 27,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12166575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlesparrowkeet/pseuds/littlesparrowkeet
Summary: He wasn't sure what happened.One moment, Hatake Kakashi was relishing his retirement period. The next thing he knew, he was standing in the middle of a pentagon drawn in blood, next to a corpse, in an unknown setting, with extinguished candles around him.What, he thought. He didn't even know he was summonable.OR: Kakashi crashes into the bnha world and tries to make the best out of it.





	1. In which kakashi realised he was actually summonable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> and his summoners realised they have made a grave mistake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should be studying, but this plot bunny wouldn't leave me alone. Whoops.
> 
> Kind of crack-ish, so don't expect anything too serious at this point in time. XD Chapters will be kinda short too. (maybe someday I'll do a proper crossover fic, but now? nahh)
> 
> Cross-posted on ff.net. Unbeta'ed.
> 
> Disclaimer (only gonna do this once): Both Naruto and BNHA are not mine. :)

He wasn't sure what happened.

One moment, Hatake Kakashi was relishing his retirement period and on the way to visit Gai. The next thing he knew, he was standing in the middle of a pentagon drawn in blood, next to a corpse, in an unknown setting, with extinguished candles around him.

What, he thought. "Kai." The scene remained. "Kai!" Still no change.

Huh, he thought, this is new. So it wasn't just a bad joke? He was actually, truly, summoned?

He didn't even know he was summonable.

He edged out of the crudely drawn pentagon, a kunai in hand. He nudged the body with a boot, confirmingthe death of the unknown person. Before he could do anything else, the door swung open. Instantly, he was on the ceiling, a genjutsu casted to hide his presence.

The person was wearing a black cloak, much like the one the deceased person was wearing. Upon seeing the corpse, he wailed and threw himself next to the body, wailing. More black-cloaked people streamed in, equally gasping in horror and crying at the sight of their deceased... Leader?

The thing was, he didn't really know.

He could discern that they were probably a cult that summoned him. Yet, their chakra were markedly different. They still had chakra, but it was subdued and faint, barely noticeable. Konoha's own untrained civilians had more chakra than them.

Secondly, he sensed no chakra in the room, not even in the blood etched on the floor. How did they manage to summon him then? He didn't want to acknowledge that he was actually, literally, summonable (what a _pain_  it was to consider), but that was the most likely explanation.

Thirdly, when they started speaking, it was in a rapid-fire language that sounded familiar, yet  _not quite_. He could still tell what they were saying, but it was with some difficulty. Some of the vocabulary and sentence structure they used were foreign and... unorthodox. As in, he had never heard them before in his life. Ever.

Kakashi was bemused. Where exactly had he been transported to? There were  seven of them, all of varying age. Some had odd features, like a fish-head-man or a person with wood-like textured skin, which made him wonder if they were experiments of a sorts. Maybe they were the last of Orochimaru's experiments, and they found his DNA and summoned him through - unknown means? 

He casted that thought to the back of his mind and focused on their conversation, attempting to make sense of his predicament before planning his next move. 

“…no, leader! What will we do n…”

“…did not work... Takeshi-san died in vain..."

"...No! Supposed to summon a strong fighter to serve us! With powers unimagina..."

"... a hoax, I told you..."

Ah, so he was right. He was supposedly summoned by them. It seems they were unaware of his presence though. Quite foolish, he thought, to be unaware of the abilities of their, well, summon.

Nonetheless, he was not complaining. Kakashi did not want to be a tool for anyone, especially not for a group this dumb.

"...who'll lead the league now? We need a new leader! I..."

Suddenly, fish-head-man's fishy eyes swivelled to a spot on the ceiling, near where he was cloaked.

"Wait. I think I sense someone." They stilled. Dog-nose-minion started sniffing the air.

Kakashi tensed, then relaxed. Analysing their physique, he knew that he could probably take them on blind-folded even they tried to attack him all at once.

Time for some fun, then.

Without warning, he flung three kunais down. They were barely an inch away from three members' foot, blades buried deep into the wood all the way to the hilt. Simultaneously, he released the genjutsu, dropping to the ground in a crouch. "Yo," he said, flipping his kunai nonchalantly, "can someone tell me," he paused as his killer intent spiked, "where I am?"

They screamed. 

* * *

It was nice to know that he could still incite fear. His students no longer screamed whenever he tried anything. He kind of missed it, honestly.

* * *

The next thing that surprised him was the fireball that came flying to his face. (Ahh, memories.) Followed by some green whips sent by tree-girl, and then the assortment of knives, shoes and a candle.

In less than ten seconds, he had knocked out the fireball-sender, (What? It wasn't chakra, he didn't use chakra,  _how is that possible_?), the tree-girl (What?? Was she Zetsu's love child? Is that even possible? Did Zetsus even had sex? He didn't want to know. Truly, just -  _no_. Just - ???), and practically everyone except one lone member staring at him, trembling. Poor child.

With a kunai to their neck, he drawled, "so?"

They promptly burst into tears. "I'll tell you! I'll tell you everything, please don't kill me!"

* * *

And so Hatake Kakashi, elite jounin, ex-ANBU captain, ex-hokage, ex-leader of Team 7, Boss of the Henohenomoheji Hatake Pack, honorary uncle to some brats, and proud sensei to three cute, not-so-little, no-longer-genin students (said brats' parents) found out about  _this_ universe.

The quirk-filled, heroes-villains universe with no chakra-wielders.

And there was no way back.

* * *

 "What do you mean there's no way back?" Kakashi pressed the knife a little harder to their throat.

The poor person gave a low sob. "We did some research, Takeshi and I, before trying to summon you. See, Takeshi can look into different universes! He can also summon small creatures and things from them, that's what make him cool and the irrefutable leader of — “

"Cut to the chase."

“A-anyway, we did some research before we summoned you, a-a-and apparently he, uh, randomly chanced upon your universe-stream, but he said nothing other than the great power your universe people wield, and, and, how this can be the thing to make us great, to finally make our name as renowned vill — “

The pressure on their neck increased minutely.

"Wait, wait! Sorry, I'll make it fast." They cleared their throat nervously. "Only he knows the exact universe you're from, because there's so many similar ones — alternate universes count too, you know? I think he pulled you out randomly from one of the many, erm, alternate universes from the Shinobi universe-stream. The wielder knows best so he might be able to send you back, but he's de-dead now and c-c-can’t.”

There was a beat. This, this was a new low among all the Dumb Villain Plans he had had the misfortune to ever witness. Usually, they would be in his favour, but not this time. “Why didn’t he just sacrifice another body and remain alive? Why couldn’t he have _just remained alive_?” _— so that I could have forced him to send me back_. Huh, maybe that was why. Oh, that would be smarter than expected. 

Kakashi hated this Takahashi already: first for summoning him (like a dog!), then throwing him into an entirely new foreign world without a way back, and finally dying on him so he could not even glean satisfaction from maiming him or forcing the man to send him back.

“I-I-I don’t know! He didn't share much details besides needing a sacrifice - an exchange, and, and, he said it'll be worth it, but we didn't expect..." They gave another low sob, followed by a ghastly Gai-like wail. "Nothing is worth your life, Takeshi!"

Okay, that's it. He always said to expect the unexpected, but this was too much. Who would ever expect this? Naruto-craziness and the insane level of craziness that generally followed Naruto had never sufficiently prepared him for this. It must be his innate bad luck. He knew it - _he knew it._

Quickly, he knocked the person out, tied everyone up, and hastily left the room of Crazy. (Maybe it was contagious.)

It was apparently a refurbished dilapidated shed he was in, with the exterior looking old and rotten, unlike its relatively nice interior (minus the blood stains that was, for once,  _so_ not his fault.)

The shed was in the middle of a forest (just his luck). He followed the small, well-worn road from the shed until he chanced upon a small village, well-hidden among the trees. He almost laughed. You could say it was a konohagakure no sato, but it's not  _his_ Konohagakure no Sato.

He walked into one of the stores and was given the stink-eye by the bored-looking cashier. Upon telling them he caught a bunch of villains in the nearby shed, her look changed to one of awe before she quickly dialled for the police. Her grandmother shuffled out from the storeroom behind and gave him a beady-eyed look. Leaning heavily on her walking stick, she eyed his attire suspiciously. "You a hero, old man?"

He hummed. "Something like that.” Inwardly, he choked - old man? he was only in his 40s, his hair was  _silver_ , damnit, and who was this old lady to call him an old man?

She snorted, scratching the wart on the nose. "You speak funny."

Kakashi looked distinctively uncomfortable as the old lady cackled. 

* * *

When the police arrived, he gave a modified recount of the attack, watching with some (read: massive) satisfaction as the villains were lead away. 

“A devil, there was a devil with glowing hands…” fish-man was rambling to the bored-looking policeman, barely struggling as he was led to the car. 

Kakashi caught his eye in passing, and raised his hand in greeting. “Yo.”

He screamed. “Devil! Demon! that’s what I was referring to! We have created a demon, what have we done!” The policeman merely sighed as he stuffed the now-struggling amateur villain into the car.

“What was that about?” the policewoman recording his recount asked. 

He shrugged, faux-innocently, hiding his face behind his beloved Icha-Icha. At least he had two copies with him. “No idea.”

Ahh, he hadn’t had this much fun since his students were genins.

* * *

As a sign of gratitude for vanquishing the pesky villains, the villagers wanted to offer a reward. “Maa, if that’s the case… Can I have a place to stay, or maybe a job? I don’t have anywhere to go,” he said sheepishly.

A generous, bubbly elderly couple that reminded him of Minato-sensei and Kushina-nee-san offered both. “We live nearby, in a farm. You can stay with us and help us for as long as you like,” Mr Fujioka, the elderly man, said warmly. 

He felt a lump at his throat. He was absolutely sure Naruto’s parents would have been like them, had they actually lived on. There was a dull ache in his chest from thinking of what could never be. “Thank you,” he said roughly.

Wrinkled, calloused hands wrapped around his equally calloused ones. “No, thank _you_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you like it! Comments greatly appreciated. Please point out any errors or blatant OOCs!
> 
> Are you keen on seeing this continued? :P


	2. Perhaps it's called paranoia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But he swore it's for safety's sake. All twenty overlapping jutsus in that tiny space of a room were all necessary for security. Mm, of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello people! Thank you all for your support! :D didn't expect it, haha
> 
> This chapter heralds what I fondly dub the Adjustment Period. It might span 3-4 chapters, and might be a bit slow-moving, sorry. This chapter in particular is pretty short.

For all that his universe was advancing in technology, this universe seemed to take it to the next level. He was fine with carriages and things-on-wheels, but an enclosed, metallic compartment on wheels that seemed to run on some sort of electricity? Sounds like a death trap. Yet the elderly ushered him into the "kuruma", laughing when he protested as if he was joking.

He wasn't.

However, whatever manners he did manage to retain from incessant nagging of others decreed that he listened to the helpful elderly. Also, how can a shinobi flee from any challenge?

Senses alert for any signs of danger, he steeled his nerves and carefully opened the door.

The interior lights switched on. He slammed the door immediately, already two steps back and with a ball of crackling purple lightning formed in one hand.

After realising nothing happened, he let the lightning fizzle out, flushing under his mask. Suddenly, Kakashi felt very, very, old.

Screw this. He wasn't ready for this. He was going to be like a good and intelligent shinobi, make a tactical retreat, and come up with an alternate plan.

The couple, bless their souls, barely reacted to his overreaction. Mrs Fujioka chuckled good-naturedly. "That's a nice quirk. What's it called?"

"Uh," he paused, then said lamely, "lightning quirk?"

"The car won't bite, come on." Mr Fujioka beckoned them to get in. The moment their backs were turned, he created a shadow clone to take his stead as he kawarimi-ed his ass out of there. He felt nary an ounce of regret or shame for sending his clone to suffer in his place. Nope, not at all.

Hiding behind the trees, he watched as his clone stiffly entered the car, this time carefully not displaying any reaction. It perched precariously at the edge of the seat. To Kakashi, his clone looked extremely uneasy, but it must have looked calm enough to satisfy the couple. Heck yeah, acting skills. He knew his experiences of running around as 'Sukea' would someday come into handy.

The rickety thing rumbled to life, then down the road they went. Kakashi was impressed; it was faster than expected. He quickly followed the car, careful to remain hidden by the foliage. Half an hour into the ride, his clone seemingly relaxed enough to lean against door and stare out of the window. Cheeky thing even waved cheerfully at him as he jumped from branch to branch, obviously enjoying itself while he suffered.

Although still distrustful of the car (the distrust would remain until he pried the moving contraption apart and learnt how it worked), it didn't so bad after all. Also, his clone survived the ride unscathed. Impressive.

They went on until the trees thinned, and the forest gave way to rolling acres of green, stretching to as far as he could see. Hills covered with more trees sat in the distance.

The rows of fields were systematic and very much like those he used to see back at home. A lone scarecrow waved lazily in the breeze, looking right at home among the lettuces. Kakashi already felt a deep sense of kinship to the scarecrow. He could relate on a spiritual level: flowing with the currents, bending but never breaking under will of the wind, braving harsh storms and unforgiving weather alone, the silent and underrated guardian of others —

They were going to be best buds. Kakashis, after all, stuck together.

* * *

At their quaint yet decent cottage, he scouted the area while Mrs Fujioka settled his clone into the guest room.

They grew tomatoes and lettuce, among other plants, he noted. The security was thoroughly lacking, but he planned to fix that as soon as he could. He already had an emergency escape route, followed by a contingency plan, and a contingency of the contingency plan planned out. After the general layout of the farm and cottage was committed to memory, he slipped back into the guest room. The moment Mrs Fujioka's back was turned, the clone was dispersed and Kakashi neatly stepped into position. Memories flooded him (pleasant ride indeed, there was even an  _air conditioner_ — wow, he's almost jealous), confirming what he already knew — Threat Level: Mr Ukki. Absolutely nothing.

She was still chattering incessantly as she changed the bedsheets. "I hope it's to your liking," she said.

"Thank you, Fujioka-sama," he said, speech halting. It was easier to understand what they were saying once he got used to their smoother, more lilting accent. Furthermore, he could make  _intelligent inferences_  (guesswork) for the unknown vocabulary and sentence structure. When she turned to face him, her eyes widening slightly before relaxing again.

She grinned, slapping his arm jovially. He tensed minutely. "Now there, no need to be so polite! You'll be living with this old couple from now on! How about taking some time to settle down before heading down? We'll have to work out some details with you."

"Ah," he said, not quite catching everything she rattled. Before he could ask for clarification, she had hobbled out of the room and was down the stairs. "Okaaaay," he said slowly, scratching his head. What was he supposed to do now?

He surveyed the room first, taking in details initially overlooked.

The room was painted a neutral brown, fitted with a small table, cupboard and a bed that was five degrees off centre. The room had a small but personal toilet - yippee, sharing bathrooms was a hassle. There was was a stone paperweight resembling an extremely ugly version of Pakkun on the table, five cracks on the ceiling, and two visible stretch of stitches on the pale pink curtains. He could hear Mr Fujioka puttering around with the pots and pans downstairs, but both the security and sound insulation could be fixed with a few well-placed jutsus.

He looked out of the window, past the blossoming flower box on the window ledge and the rows of lettuces below. The sun washed the sky with stunning streaks of reds and oranges as it dipped below the horizon. He could get used to this, he thought.

The peaceful lull that had fallen was broken by the caws of some evil crow. Crows reminded him of Itachi, which reminded him that he needed to reinforce his room now. Kakashi doubted the civilians would even notice.

The basic jutsus were casted first, soon teeming the room with familiar chakra. He nodded approvingly, taking comfort in the knowledge that it would probably take Tenzou almost an hour to break in, unscathed, at its current state.

The more complex, Hokage-approved ones would have to wait for later. He swore it was for safety's sake. All twenty overlapping jutsus in that tiny space of a room were all necessary security. Mm, of course. It definitely wasn't overkill.

_You think it's paranoia?_  He thought sarcastically at the pug paperweight judging him through grey, squinty eyes.  _It's not paranoia if you were summoned to another universe. It's_  not. He could deal with an alien world, or a different dimension, or a parallel universe. But an entirely foreign world, from — what did the villain call it — a different  _universe-stream_? That was pushing it.

Ugly didn't look convinced.

Awkwardly, he sat down on his bed, bounced a few times, deemed it too soft, then stood up again. Finally, not really knowing what to do, he turned around on the spot.

"Dinner is ready, Hatake-san!" Mr Fujioka shouted from downstairs.

"Coming!"

Ambling to the dog paperweight, he patted its head absently once, stopping at the door to apply a shock jutsu (as a warning), before making his way down to the dining room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah this one is really short, sorry :P
> 
> And maybe Konoho has cars, but I can't find any evidence of that? For the sake of this fic, let's just pretend cars have not existed yet. I couldn't resist XD In case you haven't realised, I've also tweaked the names from the previous chapter, but it's nothing major.
> 
> ABOUT THE UNIVERSE-STREAM THING: the way I view it, there's different universe-streams. Within the same universe-stream are the same players, and even though they contain the AUs, parallel universes, dimensions, different timelines and whatnot, they are somehow related (thus, same stream, yknow?). On the other hand, the universe-streams are vastly different and unrelated, for example the Harry Potter universe-stream, BNHA universe-stream, Naruto etc. While it is possible for characters to jump to parallel universes/timelines within the same stream (eg time travel, modern AUs), it's a lot harder to go back when they jump into a different stream (ahem: crossover). Sorry if any terms used are confusing/wrong, I can't find the words for it rn heh.
> 
> Maybe it'll be in more detail later on. Hope that clarifies any confusion (I'm pretty sure I made it worse?). Alternatively, you can just take it as: entirely different world, Kakashi probably can't go back, but who knows~ Leave a comment if you want to discuss more or have any queries?
> 
> Next chapter should be out in roughly a week or two. Comments? :)
> 
> -littlesparrowkeet


	3. Assimilation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was the first time someone thought he was a sixty years old man with grandchildren who kicked him out of his village. With apparently trustworthy chakra.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Tis still the Adjustment Period XD Hope it isn't too slow-moving or OOC. Maybe i should remove the 'humour' tag lolol.
> 
> Unbeta'ed.

Dinner was more flavourful than expected, and chattier than he was used to. The Fujiokas were, understandably, curious (nosy) about him.

"Your name's Hatake Kakashi, right?" Mr Fujioka asked in between mouthfuls of rice.

Kakashi longed to eat quickly, and even considered the use of chakra to force his food down at an abnormal rate. He decided against it since he had to do the social interaction thing anyway. What joy. Instead, he let his mask pool around his neck. They wouldn't be interested in his face anyway, since there wasn't that whole hubbub surrounding his mask here.

"Yes." His obligation to respond didn't stop him from giving short answers.

"Where are you from?"

"Konohagakure no Sato."

They chuckled. "So are we, so are we. But what's the name of your village?"

He grinned ruefully. "It's actually just that: Konoha."

"I've never heard of that," Mrs Fujioka mused. "Have you heard of that, Daichi?"

Mr Fujioka shook his head as he reached for another piece of fish. "Can't say I have. Not from around here, are you?"

"Ah, no. We're an actual hidden village, top secrecy."

"Oh." He paused. "What brings you here, then?"

"Hmmm... It's my first time out... And I got lost on the road of life."

Mrs Fujioka actually placed down her chopsticks in bewilderment. "The first time — sorry, were you chased out?"

"What..?" He stared, flabbergasted, at her. How in the world had she came across that conclusion?

"I knew it! Children these days, thinking they can chase their parents out once they reach their 20s!" She said indignantly. "It happened to our neighbours too, and they were such nice—"

"Ah, no, that's not the case," he quickly interrupted, desperate to put a halt to this madness immediately.

"Grandchildren, then? That's worse!"

"No, no," he protested, mind looping around the absurd idea of having spawns. Children. Grandchildren. Sage of Six Paths,  _no_. "I'm only in my 40s. And I don't have kids."

"O-oh, I'm so sorry!" A look of mortification cross her face. She turned to punch her husband in the arm. "He's under 60!"

"I said he  _may_  have grandchildren, but you were the one who brought it up," he grumbled. "But you have to admit, the hair—"

Kakashi hand went up to his hair protectively, expression affronted. "I was born with silver hair!" He said defensively. If anyone noticed that his voice was higher pitched than usual, they said nothing.

They looked dubious. "If that's what you say," Mr Fujioka said skeptically.

He deflated a little. It was the first time someone thought he was a sixty years old man with grandchildren who kicked him out of his village. It was a bit of a blow to his vanity, honestly. Did he look that old?

No, no, that can not be the case. That must not be the case. He was still in his Springtime of Yo — and oh Kami, that sounded just like Gai — abort thought, abort thought.

They continued their dinner in relative silence, with Mrs Fujioka looking his way every now and then. Initially, he assumed it was her checking that he had enough to eat. However, those sneaking side glances did not stop even after he finished eating and pulled up the mask. Her eyes roved around his physique, as if searching for something. Kakashi didn't know how to feel about that.

If he was being honest, he would say that he was unnerved. However, if you asked him, he would say he was "deeply suspicious and totally not creeped out".

She seemed to be under the impression that he didn't notice. Ha, as if a shinobi could miss such badly disguised staring.

Finally, he could take it no more. When her eyes darted over again, he deliberately made eye contact with her and held it. "Can I help you, Fujioka-san?"

To her credit, she only blushed a little. Her husband just sighed, finished his rice and headed to the kitchen get some fruits.

"Your life energy shifts and flows," she finally said, "and it's very abundant. I've never seen that before. Never." Her eyes glinted as she leant forward excitedly. Instinctively, he leant back. "Pardon my rudeness, but is it related to your quirk?"

He blinked, subconsciously taking the plate of fruit offered by Mr Fujioka as his mind tried to process the rapid procession of words. "Can you repeat that more slowly?"

"Oh! It'll make more sense if I explain my quirk first." She settled back, waiting for her husband to rejoin her before speaking again. "I can see the life energy in people. It's a passive quirk, so I can always see it. Usually, people's energies are concentrated along their spine and organs, and they don't flow much, especially not in such concentrated amounts. Yours, on the other hand..."

She made wild gestures across his body, as if tracing his chakra pathways.

His eyes widened. He straightened, giving her his full attention. "You can see chakra?"

* * *

"Chak-ra? Is that what you called it?"

"Somewhat," he hedged. "Maa, in your terms, it's life energy..." What a weird phrase. "...that can be manipulated, I guess." Had he found a chakra-sensor in this universe, in a world with no usable chakra? What were the odds. And seriously, what's the use?

She hummed thoughtfully. "It created that lightning ball from before, right?"

"Yeah. Chakra can do more than that too." He eye-smiled, then stood up. "Like this." He walked up the wall, hands in pocket.

Their amazed expressions made him feel like he was showing off to genins again. Those little brats were always the easiest to impressive.

"I've never seen anyone's energy behave like that before, not even pro-heroes," she marvelled.

Nice to know that he was the only chakra manipulator around the vicinity.

"Why do you say your quirk is lightning manipulating, then?" Mr Fujioka asked.

Kakashi shrugged, walking back to his seat. He has only been here for a few hours, how was he to know what was counted as an acceptable quirk? Now, he had an inkling that all quirks were accepted because none were normal. "People get too nosy," he said instead.

"Are you a pro-hero, Hatake-san? With that quirk and attire..." Their eyes lingered on his headband and flak jacket.

"Oh, no," he laughed nervously, rubbing his neck with one hand. "The attire is common in, uh, my village. I'm not aiming to be a hero either."

It was thankful he no longer has the sharingan. That would cause an even larger headache, oh gosh. A spinning red eye that can open up into another dimension would be hell to explain. Although, maybe, that could be his way back home. Could he really jump dimensions through it though? Maybe he would have needed someone to open up a portal from his universe first. Oh wait, Obito was dead too. Even if he still had the sharingan and went to the Kamui Dimension, there was no one else to open the gateway from his universe and haul his ass back.

Never mind then. No point thinking about it anyway.

"Why not?"

Maybe because I wasn't from this world? "My village," he said slowly, "don't have, uhm, pro-heroes. And it's not what I want to do."

"I see." Mr Fujioka's eyes sharpened onto him. The atmosphere turned serious. "What do you want to do, then, Hatake-san?" He stared intently at the shinobi as he steepled his fingers together in front of his face, leaning forward with his elbows on his table. Kakashi knew their opinion of him depended not just on his answer, but also on his approach to the question.

He blinked slowly, unfazed. "Be a farmer," he said monotonously, "and live up to my name."

They stared. Suddenly, Mr Fujioka gave a startled, low, throaty laugh, and the tension was broken. "Well, then," he said, smiling warmly, "how does starting tomorrow sound?"

* * *

There was a knock on the doorframe. He looked up from his book as Mrs Fujioka peeked her head in. "Hatake-san, here's some clothes that — Wow, did you do something to the room?"

"Yeah, safety seals." Hokage-level safety seals, in fact. "It's all over the farm too. I hope you don't mind, Fujioka-san."

"Oh, you don't have to do that!"

He eye-smiled. "Please, it's no trouble, Fujioka-san. At least let me ensure your safety." And his peace of mind.

"Well, thank you, then. Your white energy is very strong!"

"You can see the colour too?" Kakashi was impressed.

"Of course! Everyone has different colours and intensity. I can even discern the nature of a person through their life force."

"Nature - as in their personality?"

Her skill was not quite chakra sensing, then, but even more complex that that.

"Haha, maybe not that far! It's like a vague indication of a person's disposition. I've realised that the 'clearer' the life energy — hard to put it in words, you have to see it to understand — the more trustworthy they are."

That, Kakashi had to admit, was so cool. Ibiki would have had a field day exploiting her quirk.

"And your energy," she continued, "is very clear."

He was speechless.

She winked. "Why do you think we have so much trust in you, almost-stranger?"

* * *

Sadly, Mr Fujioka's old clothes could not fit him. He was much too tall.

He guess he had to rely on his other set of standard shinobi uniform from his emergency storage seal until he bought new clothes then.

* * *

At night, he disappeared into the forest to scout the area and train. He was pleased to find that the animals were the same. Had there been some mutant hybrid animals in this universe, he didn't think he would react to them well. Most of his jutsus were in working order as well, with one exception: Summoning Jutsu.

It just... Didn't work. None of his dogs appeared, even though the jutsu definitely activated. He supposed even summons could not cross the boundaries of universe.

His heart ached at the thought of never seeing his pack again. He knew he had to move forward, like he always did — plough through and make the best of his situations — but he still missed his family.

If he checked if the moon was red, it was no one's business but his.

* * *

Kakashi was quieter than usual the next day. Mr Fujioka introduced him to the other farm hands, a lovely Ms Takahashi and another part-timer whose name eluded him. They were welcoming, politely accepting his odd attire or his aversion to speaking.

Farming in shinobi attire wasn't too bad. It almost reminded Kakashi of all those D missions he sent his minions out too. Alas, this time round, it was no slacking for him.

On Day Three, the urgency to obtain new clothes increased. With no usable money, there was only one way left. "Ah, Fujioka-san, may I borrow some money to purchase new clothes?"

"Sure. Actually, how about directly deducting it from your salary?"

"If that's all right with you, alright." The salary wasn't much as the couple didn't earn much from farming as well, but he guess it was decent. He wasn't sure since the pricing of goods here was foreign to him. Anyway, he hadn't expected anything much besides meals and a room.

"Does your village use a different currency?"

In response, he pulled out a wad of the ryo he had.

Mr Fujioka gaped. "They use old currency." His tone was one of awe.

He quickly stuffed the ryo into the pocket before the farmer noticed the leaf sigil on the notes.

"So..."

"We'll go shopping with you tomorrow," Mrs Fujioka interjected cheerily as she wandered past with a basket of laundry. Her husband groaned in response.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whaddaya think? Next chapter, they go shoppingggg. Also, should i remove the 'humour' tag? AHAHAHA it's more like 'crack-taken-seriously' than humour XD
> 
> Comments will be greatly appreciated! Is it too slow-moving? :P


	4. Shopping!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Kakashi spent a lot of money that was technically not yet his and became poor(er).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't want to skip all these adjustment moments (they're precious), sorry XD Unbeta-ed.

They drove to a town a little away from the forest. The weather was still cooling despite it being late spring. Mrs Fujioka chattered the whole way through, pointing out the different neighbours and giving a running commentary about them. He listened with half a ear, taking note of their quirks and jobs. Apparently, it was bad form to ask after one's quirk, but socially acceptable to share them with others? He wasn't sure.

They first dragged him to a round of clothes-shopping. He picked up some casual, farmer-friendly attire, slacks, and more civilian clothes he had rarely ever had the chance to wear. They just didn't seem practical when he was an active shinobi, but he hardly had much of a choice now if he wanted to blend in. He even bought some of those  _jeans_  that Sasuke favoured. His kids must be so proud. ("You look great," Mrs Fujioka gushed while the assistant couldn't stop staring at his rear.)

Alas, his type of masks were not on sale. They looked at him funny when he suggested it. One shopkeeper took one look at him, puffed up his chest in indignant, grabbed a broom, and yelled, "we don't sell hero costume here! We sell clothes! Good, civilian clothes!"

"Shit," Mr Fujioka muttered, "I forgot about that. Run — run!"

Kakashi did the most logical thing: he ran.

Mr Fujioka emerged a little after, looking pale. The shop was still emitting horrifying screams of outrage. He shuddered. Kakashi was  _almost_  afraid to ask.

He did so anyway. "Do I want to k—"

"No."

"...Okay."

* * *

Mrs Fujioka offered him an alternative: surgical masks.

According to her, it wasn't weird to wear cloth masks, especially to cover up quirks. However, those mask-shirts he favoured were usually worn by heroes, or the very occasional citizen with odd quirks, so special customisation was required should he wish to purchase them. Nah, Kakashi thought. It was too much of a hassle now.

Kakashi had realised it was his shinobi attire that resembled a hero's costume. With civilian clothes, at least he wouldn't look like one anymore, even if he did wear a mask. That meant his old mask-shirt could stay without inciting too much unwanted attention from others. Wouldn't want to stand out now. Even so, he decided to get some typical surgical masks as a precaution.

"It's all the rage now," she assured him as he hovered over the range of mask designs.

He really didn't care as long as he had something comfortably mask-esque. He settled for a simple black mask that could cover the bottom half of his face entirely. It was not like his skintight mask-shirt, but eh, it was only a back-up anyway. In the event his current mask gave way and was unsalvageable, at least he would have another mask with him. The last mask-shirt he had would be saved for the utmost emergency.

It was better than nothing.

* * *

On their way to their next stop, the Fujiokas chanced upon their nearest neighbours, the Kamatas. They greeted each other excitedly as Kakashi lingered awkwardly at the back, hand twitching for his Icha-Icha but not wanting to ruin the Fujiokas' image by association. He had already formulated an escape route when Mrs Fujioka beckoned him forward, thwarting all his plans.

"This is Hatake Kakashi, our latest tenant and assistant," Mrs Fujioka introduced.

He raised his hand into a wave. "Yo," he drawled.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Kamata Tomi, and this is my wife, Kamata Ikuyo." He stuck out his hand cheerfully, and reluctantly, Kakashi shook it. The first thing that struck Kakashi was Kamata Tomi's striking green hair. The second thing that stood out was his enthusiastic attitude and penchant for chatter. When the obligatory introductions were over, he retreated to semi-hide behind Mr Fujioka.

Thankfully, Mrs Fujioka quickly engaged them in small talk. "How's Inko?"

"Oh, she's fine! She's coming back to visit with her son during the summer holidays..."

He tuned them out until they exchanged goodbyes.

* * *

The electronics store was next. ("I lost my phone. It was old and tiny anyway." "What! You're getting one now!")

The Fujiokas gravitated towards some interestingly flat televisions on display when a salesperson took the opportunity to pounce on him.

"Hi, sir! Would you like to view the latest model of the Mighty Phone?" She said cheerfully, the epitome of a typical enthusiastic and perky salesperson.

"Uh, not really..."

"Great choice!" She said loudly over him, all but grabbing onto him. It wasn't like he had a choice when she was already dragging him to the huge, flat phone on display. "Now, this phone's outstanding features include an extremely sensitive touchscreen and..."

The moment he set eyes on the phone, he was instantly captivated.

The phone fitted nicely into his hand and was sleek, thin, and black. The screen lit up when it was touched — touchscreen, she said? It didn't even have a keypad. It was super advance technology. Highly progressive.

He had never seen any phones like that before. They had phones in his universe, sure, but it was a relatively new concept. Konoha's phones were either the flippy sort or the tiny compact ones, with a keypad and a pixelated screen with muted colours. Compared to this sleek evolution, his old phone was a huge lumbering bear of clumsy.

"What can it do?" He interrupted her. She was startled out of her monologuing.

"What can it do...?"

"Functions. The functions of a phone?"

She brightened. "Ah! It has all the basic functions: calls, messaging, emails, the Internet, music, downloadable games and more! This model can also track your health..." Not understanding half of what she was saying, he tuned out and instead opted to explore the phone.

It amused him greatly that a light, careful touch (he was very, very careful) was all it took to light up the colourful, high-resolution screen. He scrolled through the little icons and finally pressed the "Internet" icon. It redirected to a site with a "Google" on it. His eyes widened.

It was  _so cool._

"That's a search engine," Mr Fujioka said from behind him. Kakashi, engrossed as he was, barely register the Fujiokas' presences. The salesgirl had wandered off earlier after realising he wasn't listening.

"Search engine?"

Mrs Fujioka gave him a sympathetic look (she must really thought he lived in a backward, dubious society) as she began to detail the purpose of a search engine. They had something akin to the Internet in Konoha, but it wasn't this advanced.

He listened attentively, then nodded once, then twice. "That's it. I'm getting this."

They were taken aback by his response. "Whoa, not so hasty! What's the rush? You don't need a phone to access the Internet."

He pointed to the nearest computer. "It must cheaper than that. Also," he smirked, "the porn will be worth it." At their aghast faces, he quickly added, "just kidding." He actually wasn't.

"Have you checked out the price?"

He flipped the tag. "This must be - wowww, the price." From the pricing of things he had seen, it seemed that one ryo was almost equivalent to ¥10. He did some quick calculations in his head and almost reeled back. Perhaps 86,200 ryo was too much for a little thing. Then again, it was the latest model.

Mr Fujioka deliberated a little. "You do need a phone, though. What about the other models?"

"Yeah. But they said this new model is very durable, as strong as All Might, whatever that may be. I wonder how durable—" before anyone could stop him, he started bending the phone into two.

"Hey — Hatake-san, you'll break the phone!"

* * *

It involved a small scuffle, an almost-broken phone and a sulking Kakashi that realised phones were still fragile, but they finally moved away from the Mighty phone.

In the end, it was a satisfied Kakashi left the shop with a ¥25,000 smartphone in his pocket.

* * *

Right before they left, Kakashi saw something on one of the display windows that made him stop dead in his tracks.

"Hatake-san? What's the matter?"

He didn't deign them a reply, instead fixating his attention on a little pot of plant fluttering in the wind. Nostalgia rushed through him, tears prickling at the corner of his eyes as he thought of a similar plant back at home, where he would never see it again. How he missed it. He hoped Tenzo would take care of it.

"Oh, do you wish to purchase a plant?"

"Yes," he whispered.

When they finally made it back to the car, he was holding the pot of plant almost reverently. Mr Ukki had stayed by his sides through tough times at home, giving him unending support and ever understanding even when he forgot to water it. He was sure that Mr Ukki II would do the same for him here.

It amazed him to find out that he spent close to ¥70,000 in an afternoon. It was money that was technically not yet his. He went from having ¥0 to having... negative ¥70,000. He didn't even know he could spend so much on a single person (himself) in a single day.

"Fujioka-san?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

The drive back was pleasant.

* * *

Kakashi redecorated his room a little, mainly unpacking his new clothes and setting Mr Ukki II on the little table, next to Ugly Pakkun Statue.

Ever since his apartment was destroyed for the umpteenth time, the silver-haired shinobi had taken to carrying some, or a copy, of his precious things around with him. They were in a specially customised, small sealing scroll in a hidden pocket sewn onto his skin-tight black inner shirt.

He was fed up with having his house wrecked, each time for various different reasons. At least, if his possessions were with him, he would be responsible for its destruction, as compared to some wannabe chuunin losing control of a fireball and sending his apartment up in flames again. Or the Pein incident, among other, more recent villains that had also partially succeeded in destroying Konoha.

Or that one time when Drunk Naruto thought it would be funny to summon Gamabunta over for a drink, only for the massive toad to raze his apartment to the ground, completely by accident on its part.

(Naruto later realised it wasn't funny at all when Kakashi bunked in with him, bringing an entire entourage of ANBUs along just cause. Too bad; if Kakashi had to make do without his entire Icha-Icha collection, then Naruto would also have to make do without Hinata-time.)

It was always his apartment that suffered,  _every time without fail_ , no matter the amount of precautionary, preventive, anti-anything jutsus placed on his house.  _He_   _doesn't understand how_. No, his possessions were much safer with him.

Perhaps he should worry that the sealing scroll might be torn while fighting or some other typical damage, but nah. Not only was he confident in his skills, he was also very safe in the village — especially during his term as Hokage. They had banned him from taking missions ("it's too much of a risk, Hokage-sama!") and his ANBU Guards hovered too much (Tenzo's idea of a joke). The shinobi villages were currently at peace as well. Even if his securities were breached, should he be severely injured or defeated, then lost sentiments would be the least of his worries anyway.

He couldn't bring everything along, but at least he had a copy of his most precious things with him. Some would call him a sentimental and paranoid old fool, but who's laughing now?

Carefully, he extracted Team Minato's picture and placed it in a photo frame by his bed. The more recent Team Kakashi picture of him in Hokage garb, together with Tenzo and Sai, were also displayed. Perhaps he would put up the original Team Seven picture later on, he mused.

He thumbed at the discoloured picture of him and his dad - one of the few that survived his Angry Years and the multiple house destructions. He deliberated the other pictures he had in his stash, then decided against it. Minato-sensei's special three-pronged kunai was set aside, as well as Jiraiya's last Icha-Icha book along with the letter stuffed inside. Those went back into the special seal, tucked away safely.

Mentally, he made a note to get a copy of all the pictures printed ASAP for safekeeping. Three copies should be enough, all squirrelled away in different locations. He should also find a way to store them in his phone too.

He was not paranoid. It was all prudent precautions.

The room looked slightly more familiar now. Mr Ukki II was a comforting presence, standing guard over his precious people once more. The ache in his heart eased a little. Finally, he felt a little less lonely.

* * *

"Fujioka-san."

Both responded simultaneously. "Yes?"

He paused, hesitating. Mrs Fujioka laughed and smacked him with the back of her ladle. Mr Fujioka was smirking ever-so-slightly as he continued slicing the vegetables. (Finally, he was not the only victim!) She hit people a lot. Thankfully, they felt like nothing.

"You've been here for over a week. No more formality! I'm Mariko-san, and he's Daichi-san, get it?"

He was slightly tentative. "Then the same goes to you, Mariko-san."

She cackled, stirring the soup. "Oh, I'm planning on it, Kakashi- _kun_."

He paled rapidly, choked, then disappeared into a flurry of leaves.

* * *

Their Internet was a  _wonderful_  place. Kakashi absolutely loved it.

He would leave it at that.

* * *

Kakashi also found out that All Might was the epitome of heroism in this world, always smiling and there to save the day. Blond hair, blue eyes? Sounds familiar. Maybe it was a basic requirement of a hero, no matter the universe. He guess he could see the appeal, but personally, he favoured unsung heroes and those that disappear into the night. Like Shinobi. Like him. (he knew he wasn't technically  _unsung_  or even  _unknown_ , but whatever.)

Their concepts of heroes and what it entailed fascinated him, and soon he was spending time doing basic research on that too. He was searching for someone with a quirk that could cross universes, and maybe a pro-hero could help him out.

* * *

He soon settled in a routine that was breakfast, train, work, lunch, work, dinner, train. Often, he would send a shadow clone in his place for half a day while he trained or lazed in the forest. It was more often the former, believe it or not. He still wanted to keep his skills sharp, thank you very much. Then again, there was only so much he could do when training with himself.

Kakashi had been working alongside the farmer for a little over a fortnight when he finally ventured out the sensitive question in this universe. "Daichi-san, what is your quirk, if you don't mind me asking?"

He barely paused in his farming. "Oh, I don't have one, actually. And I prefer it this way!"

"Is it common?"

"Being quirkless? Nah, not really. Only around twenty percent of the world's population is registered as quirkless. But I think quirks aren't worth all that hassle." He shovelled the soil. "In the end, there's still people doing bad things and people trying to fix it. Quirk or no quirk, the world's still the same, isn't it?"

He thought about it and nodded. "I think you're a wise man, Daichi-san."

"Not a wise man, just a simple farmer! I may not know much, but at least, I know my potatoes." He grinned. "Soon, you will too. Come on, let me show you how I plant the lettuces."

* * *

It was almost into the third week when Mariko-san brought it up. "Kakashi-san, may I know your IC and bank account? We'll have to register you as our assistant so we can transfer your income to you. Can't believe I forgot."

"Sorry, what?"

"Identity Card? To transfer money to your bank?"

He groaned internally. Of course they had identity papers as well. What was he to do now? Forge them? Nah, no matter how skilled he was, he could not forge something he had never seen before.

"You don't have an IC...?" Whoops, had he taken too long to answer? She paused to bellow across the house. "Daichi, Kakashi-san doesn't have an IC!"

"What! We'll go to the police station tomorrow!"

"Don't worry, we'll get you sorted, young man. It's a bit troublesome, but you have to have an IC. I didn't know your village was so, ah,  _secluded_. We'll just have to teach you everything!"

He was rather confused, but he guess getting identity papers would be worth the trouble.

* * *

It wasn't worth the trouble.

(Or, well, almost.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope it's okay :) Adjustment period should be coming to a close!
> 
> Headcanon that after his apartment and things kept getting destroyed, Kakashi got fed up and carried copies of pictures with him (I would too tbh). As for Minato's kunai — also headcanon that he managed to salvage a few, which went to Naruto, but carried the one Minato gifted to him as remembrance. Rin's medical kit might feature later on too. The pictures he had in his stash might also make a reappearance. :)
> 
> Meaning of names, for those interested (i googled 'em, sorry for inaccuracies):  
> 藤岡 (Fujioka): Surname. Wisteria (a type of peaa shrub), ridge/hill  
> 真里子 (Mariko): Real/genuine, village, child  
> 大地 (Daichi): Big/great, earth/land, but the chi also sounds like 智 (wisdom, intellect)  
> 鎌田 (Kamata): Surname. Sickle, rice paddy
> 
> Comments please! Too OOC?


	5. He doesn't always tell the truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But when he does, no one believes him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Thank you for your support! :D
> 
> In this chapter, things start to get mildly interesting as we venture into the "Interrogation Arc". Familiar characters start to appear, whoohoo. (No, no Deku yet, sorry).
> 
> Unbeta'ed.

The next afternoon, they drove to the small police box in the same town Kakashi had bought his clothes. The nearest Central Police Station in Musutafu City was three hours away from the town.

"You're not an unauthorised immigrant or a villain, are you?"

"No, Daichi-san."

"Told you he's a reliable type."

"There might be honest, reliable villains that still go around causing chaos."

"Huh, true."

Kakashi closed his eyes and wished he thought of forging an IC beforehand.

* * *

The police substation in the town was a single storey kōban with only one or two cells, an interrogation room, and three people manning it.

Mariko-san and Kakashi approached the lone policeman manning the front desk while Daichi-san acquainted himself with the sofa. "How can I help you," the policeman intoned. His name tag read Ito.

"He lost his IC, dear, and we're hoping you can help him out." Ooh, what lies. He didn't know Mariko-san had it in her.

"Name?" The policeman asked dully. Square-rimmed glasses perched at the bridge of his hooked nose. His blue uniform looked fairly tight on him. As a wearer of uniform, Kakashi was so judging him. It wasn't the pudge; no, the Akimichi clan was proof that mass did not correlate to incapability. It was how ill-fitting the uniform was that got to him. Ugh, at least he could have gotten something that fitted?

"Hatake Kakashi."

The sound of typing filled the room. The policeman wrinkled his nose in disbelieve. "No such family name?" He straightened, his pudge straining against his shirt. He looked at Kakashi proper. "Why are there no records of you?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Parents forgot. I got lazy. Never got around to doing so."

He squinted at Kakashi. "There's no records of your family too. Are you even a citizen?"

"Kinda."

The policeman stared dubiously at him. After a few roundabouts of "how can you have no ICs or records", the policeman muttered "impossible" and finally stood up. He took a moment to adjust his belt uncomfortably before leaving to make a phone call to someone named 'Tamakawa'. He returned with a distinctively uncertain look.

"I'm afraid you'll have to follow me to the questioning room. We'll have to ask you a few more questions." Turing to Mariko, he said politely, "Ma'am, please take a seat first. We'll need some time to ask him a few questions in private."

"Oh, okay," she fluttered nervously. The shinobi waved to show he was fine and sauntered after the pliceman.

The officer brought him to a quarantined room, gave a standard introduction, and thus the interrogation started.

* * *

Policeman Ito frowned down his spectacles at the laptop. Kakashi waited across the metal table, occasionally staring at the camera and resisting the urge to make rude gestures at it. They had made him push down his mask before entering the interrogation room. Suspecting that he would be searched and detained at the police station, Kakashi had decided to only bring his phone and a few weapons (he could defend himself himself well enough with taijutsu and ninjutsu, but it's better to be safe than sorry). The latter, which included senbons in the seams of his clothes, were hidden with genjutsu.

"Name?" His eyes never left the screen as he typed into the laptop slowly at odd intervals. Kakashi rarely used the computer, but he was sure that using just three fingers to type was inefficient.

"Hatake Kakashi."

"Quirk?"

"None."

"Occupation?"

Kakashi yawned. Even if he told them the truth, they would take his words as utter bullshit. "Farmer."

"Where are you from?"

"Konoha."

He typed something into the computer. There were a few seconds of pause as he peered at it. "Where's there? It's not in our records."

"It's a hidden village."

"All hidden villages are also in our records. We have the Hidden Fushō Village and the Hidden Tōkai Village, but no 'Kohona'."

Wow, there were really hidden village in this universe? He tried to search for them online that but it yielded no results. Oh wait, did the policeman just say — "It's  _Konoha_."

Policeman Ito stared blankly at him. "Wasn't that what I said."

"Uh, no — "

"Look," he said, half irritated and half discomfited, "under the law, you're currently an unregistered and unauthorised person in Japan. It's best if you don't lie and tell the truth."

Kakashi wasn't intimidated, not one bit. He sighed noisily. He wanted the truth, he said?

"Fine. Konohagakure no Sato is in the Land of Fire, near the Land of Wind. It's hidden among the leaves, as the name suggests, relatively near to the Valley of the End. It'll take me around a week — probably a fortnight for you — to get there from the Hidden Rain Village."

"What are you saying?"

"...basically, it's in a different universe."

Policeman Ito's frown deepened. "Last chance: where are you from?"

"Hmm, let's see..." His eyes drifted lazily to the ceiling. "I'm technically from the Land of Fire, but if you trace back my ancestry, it's highly possible that some Hatakes originated from the Land of Lightning."

Without another word, Policeman Ito stood up and exited the interrogation room.

* * *

He came back soon after, with a beanpole of a person trailing after him. The newcomer — Policeman Sato, his name-tag proclaimed — had juniper green eyes. He fidgeted with his earpiece, then, realising that Kakashi was eyeing him like a wolf to a sheep, folded his hands and puffed up his chest. Kakashi's unimpressed look spoke volumes.

Policeman Sato stood slightly off from Policeman Ito at the edge of the table, closer to Kakashi. The shinobi noticed that he was careful to remain in the policeman's peripheral vision.

"We'll do a test run first," Policeman Ito said as means of introduction. Kakashi felt the hairs at the back of his neck stand. Instantly, his attention honed onto Beanpole. Outwardly, he looked ever the same — half-lidded eyes, bored expression.

Policeman Sato's eyes were glowing a luminescent green. What was his quirk? An intelligent guess would be mind-reading, but he sensed no external presence trying to breach his mental barriers.

Kakashi fortified his mind anyway, slipping into his ANBU mental defence. Unreadable, like a empty white room.

"Name?"

"Again? Hatake Kakashi." The beanpole man made a gesture, but otherwise said nothing. The questioning proceeded.

"Gender?"

"Male." Same gesture. Ah, it was probably a truth quirk instead of a mind-reading quirk. Instantly, he felt relief course through him, then annoyance.

"Species?"

"Wha — dog," he deadpanned.

A different gesture was made. Yeap, Sato was definitely a truth-seeker. Just great. They thought they would be able to tell if he was lying? Ha. The policeman may have a truth quirk, but it had glaring weaknesses that Kakashi noticed and had no qualms with exploiting. After all, what was life without some fun?

Policeman Ito narrowed his eyes at him. "Species?" He repeated.

He bared his teeth in a dog-like fashion, showing off his unusually pointed canines. "Don't believe me?"

"No."

He rolled his eyes. "Fine. Hokage, purple dinosaur with green spots, special breed, beta model 6 and ninja registration number 009720."

Policeman Sato looked confused. "There's some truth in that?" He whispered. Kakashi heard him anyway. Yes, there's some truth in that, but it was irrelevant information. Not that they knew that, or even exactly which part was the truth.

"What. Is your quirk working properly?" Policeman Ito whispered back.

Beanpole bristled. "Yes," he snapped back as softly as he could. Kakashi could still hear them. Internally, he snickered.

"Never mind, we'll talk later." They turned back to him, clearing their throats awkwardly.

"Are you a villain?"

He blinked. "No. Even if I were, why would I admit it?"

Policeman Sato frowned. He did the motion for truth. Gosh, they were so obvious, it hurt to see. Glad to know he was being underestimated.

"What's your quirk?"

"Lightning quirk."

Truth guy surreptitiously made the gesture for negation.

"Don't lie."

"...energy manipulation?" He didn't have a quirk, per se, but that was the closest it could get anyway. Policeman Sato signed no, then yes, then a mix of both that was a clear "I don't know".

"Do you even have a quirk?"

"Maa, maybe. I have a toe joint though."

Policeman Ito shot him a dirty look. "So you don't have a quirk."

Kakashi shrugged. "Ah? Oh, if you say so," he said vaguely. The human lie-detector made the same "I don't know" gesture with a helpless expression.

The interrogator pressed his nose-bridge tiredly. "Okay, next question. Where do you come from?"

"From Konoha. That's in another world."

He rolled his eyes. "Not this -"

Unfortunately, Kakashi wasn't done. Staring dead-eyed at the policeman, he leant forward seriously and added, "I was summoned from another universe and can't find a way back."

The look he received was dismissive. He eye-smiled but said nothing, instead waiting for the truth man's response.

A second later, Policeman Sato blanched. "...he's telling the truth. Oh my god, Ito-san, he's telling the truth." All efforts at preventing Kakashi from hearing him fell apart as the officer's voice rose hysterically towards the end.

"...what."

Internally, he smirked, relishing in their palpable confusion. Their sweet huffs of frustration were music to his ears. It was a pity he didn't have either his phone or book. He reckoned this would take a very, very, long time.

* * *

They lasted another five minutes before they fled the room.

"Is Tamakawa-san coming soon?"

"He said he would be here by now. Let's just wait for him."

"He's, like, deliberately messing with my quirk. I don't know how, but he is," Policeman Sato swore.

"His answers are full of nonsense!" Policeman Ito exclaimed. Then, in a quieter voice: "Do you think he really came from a ninja village?"

"I don't know what to believe anymore. I think he made my quirk act up. What if he lied and I thought it was the truth? I can't tell what's real now. Is my life a lie?" He paused, yanking at his hair. "I think my life's a lie."

"...he's doing all this on purpose just to spite us, isn't he?"

"I think so too."

"What an asshole."

* * *

When Police Assistant Inspector Sansa Tamakawa walked into the holding room, he was met with his two subordinates freaking out, occasionally peering through the glass mirror. The unidentified person with no records was alone in the cell. He had tilted the chair backwards onto two legs and was staring at the ceiling in a very obviously bored manner.

Tamakawa knew he had the features of a cat and occasionally walked silently like one, but for the officers to not realise someone had entered was an all-time low. As he approached, he heard Sato questioning his sanity out loud. Did he want to know what was going on? Who was he kidding, he didn't even have a choice. It was part of his job description.

He cleared his throat. "What's going on here?"

They jumped in shock. When they realised it was just him, they instantly latched onto him like lost kittens.

"Tamakawa-san, thank god you're finally here."

It took a whole ten minutes for them to blubber through their story. His cat ears were twitching in annoyance by the end of it.

"We should probably alert the pro-heroes on this," concluded Ito as he pushed up his spectacles.

Tamakawa raised an eyebrow. "And why?"

"Half the time he's convinced on the things he say, and the other half, my quirk detects not-quite-lie even when it's a blatant dinosaur lie." Sato looked close to tears.

They teetered a little, doubt planting in their mind. "But maybe he's really a dinosaur?" Sato asked.

They took a moment to consider that. "That can't be it," Ito said nervously. "Right?"

Tamakawa smacked both of their heads. "Get it together! Sato-san, doesn't your quirk only detect if the person is lying? Mix some truths and lies and you get confused which is which. Seriously, hasn't this happened before?"

"Not in the interrogation room, and not to this level, no," Sato said glumly.

Tamakawa gave him a long look of disbelief before continuing. "Or maybe this Hatake person believes the rubbish he spews. That doesn't make them facts."

"Just in case, shouldn't we ask a hero with a stronger lie-detecting or mind-reading quirk? Maybe Exvera?"

"She's been posted to Spain for an indefinite period of time."

They groaned.

"There is also the possibility," Tamakawa said slowly, "that he has a quirk that counters Sato's. Have you considered that?"

"Oh. Uh, no."

"Seriously? What have you two been doing?"

They gave a nervous chuckle, but otherwise said nothing. Tamakawa exhaled tiredly, pressing the bridge of his nose to ward off his growing headache.

"Then that means...?"

"Yeah, I'll have to call in the next best alternative. We'll need his insights too." He spun his pen in one hand. "Get Eraserhead on the line."

* * *

"Hey, wasn't there that cult that claimed they have summoned a demon? It was a grey-haired masked man that apprehended them, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

Tamakawa smacked Ito's head with his clipboard. "You idiot, Hatake has grey hair! He was wearing a mask too, wasn't he? Check the records, im sure it's him! Interrogate the villains, maybe they know something!"

"Oh my gosh, I didn't think of that."

"I'm surrounded by idiots," Tamakawa muttered.

Ito made to leave, hesitated, then turned around again. " But the villains are held at the Nishi Police Station..."

Their inspector waved them off in annoyance. "I'll interview them myself."

"Then..."

He swerved in his chair to scowl fiercely at Ito. "I'll bring Hatake down too, alright?"

"Tamakawa-sama," Sato said in all seriousness from behind, "you're a godsend."

He buried his face in his hands. "Just — just get out."

They fled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know who's gonna appear in the next chapter~~
> 
> In BNHA, Sansa Tamakawa's just a police officer (he's the cat-guy) but I needed someone so i upped his rank. Any info comes from Google and wikis, as usual.
> 
> I'll reply to reviews in Dec (sorry! but i do read them and they mean a lot to me :'))
> 
> Name Meanings:  
> -Exvera (OC heroine for the purpose of name-dropping, but she might appear in later chapters - much, much, later): from X-Veracity; as in X from Professor X, and veracity meaning "accuracy, truth". yeah yeah, it's very original :P  
> -佐藤 (Sato), 伊藤 (Ito): common surnames, randomly chosen  
> -韜晦 (Tōkai): meaning "hidden"  
> -不詳 (Fushō): meaning "unknown"  
> yeah i literally named the hidden villages "The Hidden Hidden Village" and "The Hidden Unknown Village".  
> -西区 (Nishi-ku): west ward (the police station is in the west ward of the city, thus "Nishi Police Station")
> 
> About police stations in Japan: Kōban - small neighbourhood police stations, normally in urban areas. Manned by 3-4 (or even up to 10) police officers. More info covered later on, or you can Google more if you're interested XD (only did a brief research, all info comes from google, so please correct me if i've made a mistake.)
> 
> Hope it's okay AHAHAHA. Comments? :)


	6. The Peculiarity That Was Hatake Kakashi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heroes make an appearance! Files are read, questions are asked, and everyone is still confused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Interrogation Arc!

Shiketa, the co-leader of the Black Summoning Cult, sat in his pathetic jail as he plotted his Grand Escape. Soon, he would escape, then break out his sister and fellow followers as well. The high security in Nishi Police Station — the nearest Central Police Station in Musutafu — was but a measly hindrance to him! It was too meagre to suppress his obviously superior prowess.

He was just bidding his time. Had been, for the past month. Because... Because.

Dinner had just ended, which meant that the best time to escape was soon! Everyone would be in the state of Food Coma, so no one would be prepared if he struck now...

The door swung opened, thwarting his plans. Ahh, but he was so close. The guards escorted him into an interrogation room. What did they want from him now? He wasn't scared, n-no, he was just c-c-curious.

A policeman with a cat face was already waiting. Yellow pupils with slitted eyes stared sharply at him from among the brown fur. Triangular cat ears sat at the top of his head, twitching ever so often.

"Good evening, Shiketa-san," he said. "I'll like to ask a few questions about your supposedly summoned being."

Shiketa jutted out his chin defensively. "I won't tell you anything! The demon we've unleashed will rain lightning and thunder down on your heads as revenge for keeping us captive!" He spat and raved.

"I knew you'll say that," sighed the policeman, unperturbed. He wasn't scared? Why wasn't he scared? "So I brought a guest." He turned around and called out, "if you'll please come in, Hatake-san."

The door creaked open ominously. Shiketa trembled.

Slowly, a foot appeared at the doorway. Then another. His horror mounted. The  _being_  took another step out of the shadow —

— and into the room. The demon grinned, hair bleached an unnatural bone white. His eyes were pits of darkness that devoured the souls of a thousand pitiful victims, the glint in them like claws ready to maul him into pieces.

"Yo," he said cheerily, making a peace sign and cocking his head. "Did you miss me?"

* * *

Shiketa screamed.

"I'll tell you everything! Please don't let that demon eat me!" He begged.

"Sure," Tamakawa purred as Hatake was escorted out again. He grinned widely, like a satisfied cat with its prey. Thank you for your cooperation."

* * *

The Nishi Police Station was bustling with activity, despite it only being nine in the morning.

Eraserhead strode down the corridor, with Sir Nighteye and a red-headed teenager just one step behind him. Tamakawa met him right outside the investigation room.

"Eraserhead, Sir Nighteye," he nodded, "it's good to see you again."

The sides of Eraserhead's lips tugged upwards. It was not the first time he had worked together with the Assistant Inspector, although most would not have expected the underground pro-hero to be well acquainted with a police officer, especially one that was not based in the Musutafu Police Headquarters. Sansa Tamakawa had no qualms in reaching out to pro-heroes for assistance, and his supervisors apparently trusted him enough with tricky cases. Also, the fact that he was one of the more capable police officers on rotation throughout the police stations and kōban around Musutafu also played a part.

Personally, he liked that Tamakawa was a reliable and fast worker who could stand firm even in the presence of pro-heroes. No gushing, eager-to-please police officers, please.

Eraserhead motioned to the teenager. "My student, Ash Mystic. I hope you don't mind me bringing her and Sir Nighteye along, Tamakawa."

"Not at all. Thanks for coming," he said. "Sorry for the short notice. I just received the case two days ago, but thought it was best to ask for assistance as soon as possible. As briefly covered over the phone yesterday, the detainee is... An anomaly."

Sir Nighteye cocked his head in a bird-like manner, his atypical scowl on his face.

Tamakawa felt obliged to elaborate. "He has no records, neither personal — fingerprint doesn't even register in the database — or even family records, not even from the international database."

"How can that be? Even citizens from the hidden villages have records," Nighteye mused.

"He claims to be from another universe, summoned by some villains." The Assistant Inspector grimaced. "Worst thing is that in a case a few months back, villains swore they summoned a 'demon' - him, supposedly - for their heinous world domination plan. His subsequent appearance seemed too close to be a coincidence."

"Let me guess," Eraserhead said dryly, "their utterly heinous, extremely ingenious plan backfired."

"Their 'demon' was the one who turned them into the police," he admitted. Ash Mystic looked surprised.

"Can we view the interview recordings first?" Nighteye asked.

With a nod, Tamakawa led them in.

* * *

Tamakawa gave them another brief run-through as he loaded the recordings. The pro-heroes studied the picture of the detainee with a critical eye. His grey hair fell haphazardly over his face, almost reaching those heavy-lidded eyes. There were wrinkles and laugh lines on his face, alongside a beauty mark near his mouth. He had distinctive sharp canine teeth that resembled a dog's. When he smiled, the pointed edges peeked out from under his upper lip. With a defined jawline and sharp features, Hatake Kakashi was what many would consider handsome.

He wore a pair of jeans and a fitting button-down black shirt that hinted at a toned body. Underneath his shirt was another skin-tight material that was pooled around his neck. According to descriptions, it usually served as a mask that reached up to his nose bridge.

He slouched even when standing, and had a perpetually nonchalant expression. However, there was carefully hidden cunning behind those half-lidded eyes. His movements, seemingly languid, were balanced and deliberate. It would hardly take any effort for his current posture to transition smoothly to one suited for fighting.

Eraserhead recognised it immediately.

"Huh," Nighteye remarked, "he stands like you."

The teacher glared at the smirking pro-hero. Tamakawa played the video, and their attention refocused back onto Hatake.

* * *

"He figured out Sato's quirk in after he spoke two sentences?"

Tamakawa started. "How do you know that?"

Nighteye paused and rewind, freezing the video and zooming into Hatake's reaction when Sato walked in. "Look at his face. It's _very carefully_  blank, as if he was expecting something along the lines of a mind-reader or lie detector. Then," he fast-forward a little, "he relaxed just a little after Sato gestured."

Tamakawa squinted at the screen. "He looks the same," he complaint. The pro-heroes gave him pitying looks.

"His head tilted just slightly," offered Eraserhead. Ash Mystic looked equally befuddled, so Tamakawa felt less like an idiot.

"Anyway, I mean to point out that he seems to be experienced with interrogations." Nighteye paused. "And telepaths."

"After figuring out Sato's quirk — and figuring out their hand signals, probably — in barely half a minute, you can see that he became a lot more amused by the duo."

"How do you know he figured out their signals?"

Eraserhead turned apologetically to the police officer. "Your subordinates are the opposite of subtle. It's no surprise if he figures out their signals."

Tamakawa sighed. "You figured it out immediately too, didn't you."

The pro-hero very politely did not reply.

* * *

Nighteye gave a low chuckle as he watched video-Sato flounder and made a helpless 'I don't know' gesture. "He's playing with them."

Tamakawa smacked his face and groaned. "They're making it way too easy."

"Can't say their reactions aren't funny," grunted Eraserhead. Nighteye gave another approving chuckle. The red-haired student shot her teacher a bewildered look and received an eyebrow raised in amusement.

The Assistant Inspector sulked. "I'm not sure why you're deriving satisfaction from this when he's just he's making our lives harder."

"You just gotta appreciate his humour."

* * *

"Doesn't seem villainous or demonic, besides having a bad sense of humour."

"I like his sense of humour.

"You have bad taste, Nighteye."

* * *

"His accent," muttered Nighteye. "Do you recognise it?"

Eraserhead frowned. "No." After coming into contact with so many dialects and accents, Nighteye had made it a point to familiarise himself with as many as he could. Eraserhead, on the other hand, picked it up from all the underground fightings. However, both did not recognise the lower, harsher tones that Hatake used.

"His speech pattern sounds old, like from poems and stuff," Ash Mystic, Aizawa's red-haired student, piped up.

"Old Japanese literature's language structure?" Suggested Tamakawa. Nighteye made a sound of agreement.

"If he says he comes from a village of ninjas, which is roughly from the feudal eras, then his accent supports it."

"Time travel?"

Nighteye paused to think about it. "It's possible," he said carefully, "and that certainly explains his toe joint."

"Yet he also mentioned the possibility of having a quirk," Eraserhead pointed out.

"Yeah. Wonder what's that about, hmm?"

* * *

"Sato and Ito are way out of their depths when they faced him."

"I know," grimaced Tamakawa. "They're usually reliable and effective when carrying out other duties, but they're not suited for this type of police work."

"It's a good thing you called us," Nighteye said. "He's... Interesting, to say the least."

Eraserhead stood up, stretching. "Alright, how about viewing the villains' recounts?"

* * *

"How many people are on this case?"

"Just me. The Superintendant and higher ups are is trying to keep this as low-profile as possible, which is also why only I'm handling it. Sato and Ito knows something's up, but they don't know the details."

Eraserhead hummed in agreement. "Keep it that way. Won't want to cause undue panic."

"Of course."

* * *

Eraserhead thumbed the profile of the leader of the cult pensively. "A quirk that can transport objects through different universes," he said.

"Didn't know a human being was an object."

"That's why Takeshi needed a blood sacrifice and a whole demonic summoning ritual," Nighteye pointed out. "Myths have truth in them. It happens that such methods _do_ enhance his quirk."

The hero paused as the statement sank in, then shook his head incredulously. "Oh my god," he muttered. "Can you believe he was actually summoned like a demon? Pentagon, candles, all that?"

Eraserhead grunted wordlessly. He didn't have enough coffee for this.

"Just..." Nighteye whistled. "Wow. It's like the cosmos' greatest joke. Whatever did Hatake do in his life to deserve this?"

"We can ask him."

Ash Mystic dutifully wrote the question down.

* * *

"He took them out in less than five minutes?  _How?_ "

"We've already established that he has some power, right? The question is: what is it?"

"Perhaps Shiketa exaggerated?"

"It's possible, but he still took out seven people with relative ease, even when disoriented and in a foreign setting."

"Yeah." Nighteye laced his fingers together, face casted in shadows. "Don't underestimate him, he's dangerous."

* * *

"Oh yeah, I brought Hatake down to see the cult members yesterday."

"Oh? What was their reactions?"

Tamakawa snorted. "Absolutely priceless."

* * *

Nighteye tossed the file into the table and glared at it. "So we know that he's not a villain, has unknown powers, is potentially formidable, and probably comes from a different universe. What else do we know? His purpose, his alignment?"

"He worked for the Fujiokas for a month as a..." Tamakawa blinked, paused, then squinted to make sure he was reading the correct thing. "...Farmer."

"What."

"Farmer. He was a farmer." Nighteye looked suitably confused. "Why?"

Tamakawa shrugged. Eraserhead sighed and motioned his student to record it. "One more thing to ask him, then."

* * *

"Have you checked his phone's Internet history?"

"Yeah." The policeman ticked each item off his fingers as he listed them. "He watches some porn, and reads: erotica, articles on heroes and hidden villages, erotica, articles on people with dimension-travelling quirks, and oh, more erotica." He slid the list of sites onto the table.

Eraserhead blinked at it. "That's a lot of porn."

"Technically, it's  _highly rated adult romance books_. But anyway, look: he searched for 'Konoha' before. Didn't he mention that in the interview?"

They replayed that part. Eraserhead leant back. "Taking into account that Sato didn't call foul, he's telling the whole truth."

"But Aiz— Eraserhead," Ash Mystic said hesitantly, "didn't Sato-san report that his quirk was messed up?"

Nighteye shook his head. "Technically true, but not quite. Hatake confused Sato with truths and lies, which would send Sato a mixed signal. However, when Hatake tells a blatant lie or a whole truth, Sato can detect it. But that's all Sato's quirk can do; he can't rely on his quirk to to sieve out the useful information from the irrelevant nonsense meant to deflect the questions. That's why it's limited, actually."

The police officer narrowed his eyes. "So if what he says about Konoha is true, that means that most of what he said in the first interview..."

"...is most probably true," finished Nighteye. "And that's the beauty of isn't it? Deceiving by telling the truth." He wore a shit-eating grin.

Eraserhead raised a finger. "Logical ruse," he said simply, and his student groaned.

* * *

"Have there been other cases of interdimensional travelling before?" Eraserhead abruptly asked. They pondered about that, then proceeded to spend the next hour researching on past records and files. Ash Mystic stuck to the Internet since she wasn't technically authorised to view the police records. It was more difficult than expected to sieve for relevant and reliable information - or even garner information at all.

"There was a time traveller," Tamakawa said an hour later.

"What happened to him?"

"He died."

They fell into a stunned silence. "Moving on," Eraserhead said as if Tamakawa had not said anything, "anything else?"

The sound of typing filled the room before Ash Mystic said, "There was an alien from another dimension fifty years ago."

"An intergalactical  _and_  interdimensional traveller? Wow."

"She was carted off into the government secret labs and... never seen again," she said uneasily.

The room fell silent again. "That's... Great," Tamakawa said weakly.

Nighteye snorted as he pulled out a bunch of records from the database. "I've no idea how you have gathered such weird results, but I found a compiled list, sorted by year, of the recorded cases of dimension-hopping."

They crowded around his computer as he displayed the neat rows of case names and brief descriptions. There were almost twenty cases recorded in the span of two centuries from all over the world. Most were highly classified information that were locked, with nothing more given besides the name and the year.

"You're amazing," Tamakawa breathed.

"As expected from a Super Office Worker," Eraserhead whispered such that only Nighteye heard it. He kicked the younger hero viciously under the table. Eraserhead flinched.

"Hatake isn't the first person to experience interdimensional travelling due to a quirk, but he was the first supposedly ninja to have done so," he elaborated.

"What happened to the rest?"

"Sent back by the ones who brought them here — which is extremely rare, and we don't know how many or who possess a similar quirk - or assimilated into the societies. Or, in some cases, they mysteriously disappeared." As if the last part wasn't ominous at all.

"Wow, the last recorded case was twenty years ago in Belgium." Eraserhead browsed through the descriptions. "All came from a parallel world, or somewhere with quirks — except for that one alien. Hatake's still an anomaly."

"What about time travellers?"

"That's more complicated, but I doubt it. Time-quirks and dimension-quirks are entirely separate, so even if he came from a parallel universe of our ancient past, the timeline's still different. It doesn't change anything. He's still from a different dimension."

Tamakawa groaned. "So now we have more evidence that Hatake is highly possibly from another universe. That's great."

"At least we know that if he is cooperative, he can be assimilated into the society with little complications," Eraserhead pointed out.

Tamakawa groaned again. "Do you want a possible ninja running around wild and free among the civilians, unsupervised?" the police officer demanded. The pro-hero grimaced. "Yeah. That's what I thought too."

* * *

Tamakawa checked his watch, then made a sound of surprise. They had spent the whole day researching and just bouncing ideas off over and over. "It's already seven. Shall we call it a day?"

They nodded. "We'll see you tomorrow at nine, then."

* * *

The second day was spent reviewing the case materials again, making sure they left no information out as they compiled a comprehensive list of questions. It was eleven in the afternoon by the time they confirmed that all their bases had been covered.

"Great. So we know that he's not a dog, he's male, he's not a villain but worse - he's an unpredictable variable from another universe. He may be a ninja — do you think that's his actual ninja registration number? — from a hidden ninja village called Konoha, he may have a strong power similar to a quirk that is related to energy manipulation and not — or not limited to — lightning, and that he's currently a farmer." Tamakawa rattled off in one breath, then inhaled deeply. "Anything else?"

"We know the relative location of Konoha."

The Assistant Inspector made a face. "Anything else related to Hatake?"

"He likes porn, but the kind that's sort of sappy."

He shot Nighteye a mildly irritated look. "Anything else about Hatake that's worthy of taking note?"

"Has trickster tendencies, but possibly also possess some variant of morals, seeing as how he turned the villains in, then went on and become a farmer."

"Farmer?"

Eraserhead nodded seriously. "Farming is good character building."

Tamakawa adopted a stupefied expression. "How's that notable?"

He quirked an eyebrow up. "We may need to predict his personality," he said solemnly.

The policeman shook his head and reached for his pen. "Okaaay," he said after adding that in, "anything else of  _actual value_?"

"Ah, he may be a Hokage — whatever that means. Maybe it's a subspecies, or an occupation?" Eraserhead mused.

"And that is important?"

"Not really." They fell silent. "Actually, we know close to nothing to him, besides all these irrelevant facts. However," Eraserhead picked up a flimsy sheet of paper and shook it. It flapped noisily, filling the silence of the room. "We  _do_  have a long list of questions and theories now."

Tamakawa very almost slammed his pen down. Instead, he reached for his cup of black coffee and chugged it down in one go. He checked his watch; it was already twelve. Hatake's lunch should be over by now. He stood up abruptly.

"Shall we visit our esteemed guest now, then?"

Eraserhead looked over his shoulders at his student. "Ready?" Ash Mystic nodded, flexing her fingers, a determined expression crossing over her petite features.

The teacher turned back to the police officer. "Lead the way, Tamakawa-san."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that met your expectations, haha. Comments? :) I'll reply in Dec though, sorry!


	7. And finally, someone believes him

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trust goes both ways. When Eraserhead makes an effort to trust Hatake, the shinobi puts his trust in the hero too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've edited chap 5 (some minor changes to the descriptions) and 6, with a small section added to the latter about previous records of dimension travellers. Will rec you check chap 6 out again :)

Kakashi was bored out of his wits. After the Sato and Ito Interrogation, an Assistant Inspector Tamakawa Sansa had transferred him to the Nishi Police Station in the West Ward of Musutafu City at night. The next two days consisted of waiting aimlessly in detention. The only fun he had was seeing the cultists on the first day, and that only lasted ten minutes collectively. Poo.

It was currently his third day in the police cell at Nishi Police Station, and if there was no entertainment by the end of the day, he was going to  _find some himself_. Maybe stage an escape, or mess with the guards. Convince them to give him some reading material. Steal their keys.  _Do_  something.

The police officers had reassured the Fujiokas that it was a customary check and not a cause of concern. He would probably be back in a week, they had said. He thought he could also be dead in a week for all the Fujiokas knew. At this rate, he would probably die from having nothing to do.

He needn't have worried. After an early lunch at eleven, he was brought into another interrogation room. The door opened and Assistant Inspector Tamakawa walked in.

The first time they had met, Kakashi stared at the cat-man for longer than what was socially acceptable, but the Assistant Inspector was very nice about it. A human being with an animal head still took some getting used to though. Huh, and he thought Hoshigaki Kisame was weird. At least this Tamakawa was polite and respectful.

A man with bloodshot eyes, together with a teenage girl, followed after the Assistant Inspector.

The man had messy, unkempt hair that fell to his shoulders, resembling a mop. A really long, grey scarf wrapped around his neck. Kakashi wondered at its practicality - perhaps it served a dual function. His suit was entirely black but not exceptionally odd. Besides looking like an overworked, sleep-deprived young man, the newcomer was nondescript and unremarkable.

The girl, on the other hand, was undeniably in a hero costume. She was young; if he were to guess, he would say she was roughly 18 years of age. Her hair was fiery red, straight and mid-back length. She wore a skin-tight white and brown suit, coupled with arm guards and white belt. An auburn cloak with its hood down was clasped around her neck, falling to her knees. By association, he would warrant that the older man was a hero as well - perhaps her tutor?

"Hello," Kakashi purred, "nice to see you again, Assistant Inspector."

"Hatake-san. Have you been been well-taken care of?"

"Brilliant! A pity I have nothing to do." He sighed exaggeratedly. "To what do I owe you and your guests this pleasure?"

"We'll like to ask you a few questions pertaining your circumstances, Hatake-san."

"I prefer dogs," he said abruptly, as if that answered everything. The Assistant Inspector closed his eyes and counted to ten.

The man tapped his shoulder, signalling he would take it from there. Tamakawa took it as his cue to leave. The stranger sat down opposite of Kakashi, while the girl stood hovering slightly behind him.

"Hatake-san, I'm Eraserhead, a pro-hero of Musutafu City, and this is Ash Mystic. We're here to ask you a few questions. You should be aware of your position currently; cooperation would be your best choice," he said blandly. He could feel the man's gaze weighing on him.

"Oh? A hero?" Kakashi eye-smiled, lacing his fingers together and resting his chin on them. "Nice to meet you, Hero-san. I've been wanting to meet one of you for a while now."

* * *

"Wow," Sir Nighteye muttered, frowning. "He's a lot more intense than before." He also noted that Hatake's speech was accented, but comprehensible. For a supposedly ninja from a different universe which was bound to have different variations of languages, he picked up on changes fast.

"A lot more irritating, too," Tamakawa grumbled.

* * *

Eraserhead's eyes sharpened. "Is that so. What for?"

"To go home, of course." Hatake tilted his head, tone silky. "Surely you know I'm from another universe? Or have I overestimated your abilities?"

He did not rise to the bait. "We'll be the judge of that. Now, we'll like to conduct a quirk-induced interrogation under the law. Do you know what that entails, Hatake-san?"

The detainee hummed. "An explanation won't be amiss."

"With your consent, a truth quirk will be used on you. We'll be sticking strictly to the questions related to the case, and you'll still be conscious of your response. While this is not obligatory at this point in time, it will greatly speed up the process. As long as you don't have anything to hide, you have nothing to worry about." Eraserhead sifted through the papers he had in hand, then placed one in front of Hatake. "Do we have your consent?"

Hatake looked at him through hooded eyes. "Tell me more about the truth quirk first."

The pro-hero beckoned his student forward. "Ash Mystic's quirk compels pure honesty in everything you utter for two hours. She will also be simultaneously skimming your surface thoughts to ensure your words match your intent." Upon seeing Hatake frown, he clarified, "she can't delve deeper than that. Even if, by happenstance, she found out anything personal, unless it's against the law, she's law-bounded to keep silent about it."

The man surveyed the red-haired girl. "You're an intern," he said. She bristled, placing both hands on her hip.

"Do you doubt my skills, mister?" She challenged, hair swishing behind her and a daring glint in her eyes. Ah, she had a temper, Kakashi could feel it. The posture was reminiscent to a certain Red-Hot Habanero an age ago. Idly, he wondered if her hair could stand as well, then dismissed that ridiculous notion.

He thought of his own students, young but formidable in their own right, then chuckled softly. Picking up the pen, he signed his consent quickly. "Maa, funnily enough, I don't." He narrowed his eyes at her. "But a word of caution: for both of our sakes, don't look too deeply into my thoughts."

His aura rested heavily in the room. All of a sudden, she struggled to breathe. The intensity of his presence was suffocating, bearing down on her ruthlessly and almost making her knees buckle. She barely resisted.

Instinctively, Eraserhead shot up into a defensive stance in front of his student, quirk activated, but the man's stifling presence remained. Hatake didn't even deign the pro-hero a glance, looking past him, eyes still locked with his student's.

She eyed the dark look in his eyes and swallowed her bubbling fear. "Of course," she finally whispered hoarsely. He looked away, and the oppressive atmosphere completely disappeared.

Hatake had done  _something_ , but Eraserhead didn't know what it was. He was wary, but the interrogation had to carry on. The faster the truth quirk was in effect, the better. Reluctantly, he sat back down.

"Any time you feel that your privacy is being invaded, mention it and we'll determine the necessity of the question with regards to the case. You're also allowed to hire an attorney to screen through the recording of this interview should there be a need for it. Any other questions before we officially commence?"

"How can I trust your words during the interview?" Hatake asked. The pro-hero stared evenly back.

The muffled voice of Nighteye sizzled through the wireless headset. "He's goading you. Shut him down. Don't even consider it, Eraserhead."

"Do you have anything to hide?" He parroted mockingly.

A few tense seconds later, Eraserhead reached for a pen.

"Damnit, Eraser-"

Ignoring the curses filtering through the earpiece, he wrote on a piece of paper and lifted it up for all to see.

"I, Eraserhead, hereby give permission for Ash Mystic to use her quirk on me for this interview, on my authority as pro-hero of Musutafu."

His student faltered for a moment. "Are you su-"

"Yes," he cut her off, all the while not breaking eye contact with the unblinking man in front of him. "Proceed, Ash Mystic."

Hatake was still leaning on one palm. He eye-smiled, looking pleasantly surprised. "Interesting," he cooed. "I think I like you already."

* * *

Much as it would be fun to toy with them, Kakashi ultimately chose to cooperate. He really didn't want to end up being hunted across the country or detained for longer than necessary. Peace and freedom and all that.

He wanted them to find out about him. He wanted to incite curiosity. He wanted to spur them to help him. The heroes would naturally try to find solutions to send him back, since he was an anomaly in this universe, and maintaining the status quo was one of the jobs of law enforcers.

He wanted their trust. He  _needed_  their trust since he wish to seek assistance from them.

The heroes came to him, saving him the trouble of finding them or sourcing for dimension-hopping quirks. The heroes came to him, so he would save them the extra trouble by answering their questions. He had questions too, and by answering theirs, he knew would get his.

He would trust them, especially after Eraserhead took the leap to trust him. Trust, after all, went both ways.

* * *

Ash Mystic cupped her hands together with a look of immense concentration. A moment later, her hands opened to show a small pile of ash. Then, slowly making her way to Kakashi, she carefully blew some of it into his face.

It took all of Kakashi's willpower not to react to the powder. He blinked, some of the dust having caught in his eye. The rest settled into his skin, sinking in and dissipating as if it have never existed. He felt a whisper brush past his mind, and instantly, his ANBU defences went up.

The red-haired girl visibly flinched. "Ease up a little, will you?" He lessened minutely, wary. The presence hovering at the edge of his mind prodded his thoughts gently, then retreated to a safe distance. Kakashi regarded the girl in surprise. She did keep her word on skimming the bare minimum of his thoughts.

The same process was repeated with Eraserhead. After a mental connection was established with both, she nodded. "Okay."

"Do you require the laws to be reread, Hatake-san?"

He didn't.

"Alright. We'll start with a control question. Where are we?"

The words slid from Kakashi tongue smoothly without conscious thought. "Police station." He was taken by surprised despite knowing the theory behind it.

"Okay. What's your name?"

He resorted to not reply, and surprisingly, it didn't force him to. On the other hand, the moment he tried to say something other than the truth, for example 'Sukea'—

"...Hatake Kakashi."

—it didn't work. Despite himself, a low chortle escaped his lips. "You have an impressive quirk, heroine."

She blushed.

* * *

"Next question," Eraserhead continued. "Where are you from?"

He let the words flow. "Konohagakure no Sato. I believe it's in a different universe from here. Are you an established pro-hero?"

"I didn't agree to play twenty questions with you, Hatake-san. But yes, I am. Tell me more about the village and your occupation."

"It's a ninja village, but we have civilians as well. I'm a shinobi." He stopped there, unwilling to go into more details. Kakashi tried to keep his mind blank. Unfortunately, images of him dying of paperwork, then of Naruto taking up his mantle, flitted through his mind.

Ash Mystic's eyes widened. "You were the village leader."

He winced, cursing internally. Drat, he was hoping she didn't pick up on that. "Ah, yes, I'm the Hokage."

Eraserhead appraised him in a different light. "Were you the most powerful shinobi?"

"Not sure how that's important, but no, I'm not." Hatake grinned wryly. "Do you know anyone with a quirk to send me back?"

Eraserhead took a moment to think. "For now, no, but we will look into it. Please recount how you came into this world."

For the first time since stepping foot into the world, he told his side of the story truthfully.

"Tallies with the villains'," Nighteye muttered through the earpiece. "How did he do it though?"

"What did you use to take out the villains? Why did you subdue them?"

Kakashi scratched the side of his nose. "Used my skills. They weren't hard to subdue." His smile was all teeth, sharp and wolfish. "And they annoyed me, dragged me into a new environment and expected me to heel at their beck and call. Why shouldn't I turn them in?" He cocked his head to one side. "What's the most probable fate I would face?"

"If things go smoothly, you'll be free to go in a few days. We'll look into a way to transport you back home in the meantime. You won't be detained," Eraserhead narrowed his eyes at him, "unless you pose a threat to the society."

"I don't harm innocents for the fun of it, nor did I come searching for trouble," Kakashi said innocently, holding both hands up in a mock gesture of surrender. He didn't  _come_  into this world looking for trouble, but he made no promises of trouble-seeking in the future. "I'm law-abiding." He just happened to find loopholes in the rules, or bend them without outright breaking them. "I come in peace."

The pro-hero could find no fault in his declarations. He was contemplative as he made a mark on his questionnaire. "Back to the cultists. You could have had your revenge on them. Why didn't you?"

Kakashi actually thought about it for a little while. His mind flashing to the Uchiha's Curse of Hatred and his lovely, revenge-obsessed student. Bah. "Revenge? That's pointless," he said, tone old and heavy. "The fate of those who seek revenge is grim. You end up suffering even more."

He held Eraserhead's gaze for a second before adding, "plus, they might have answers I require in the future." His grin turned cheeky. "Watching them squirm is also a lot more fun."

Over the headset, Nighteye snorted.

* * *

"Do you have any intentions of working with any villains, now or in the future?"

"No. Let's just say that those who hurt innocents and civilians are detestable." Hatake's eyes gained a strange, sadistic glint. "They're scums. That's answer enough, no? What's your quirk?"

Eraserhead shot him an irritated look. "Not telling. State your current intentions."

Hatake spread his arms wide innocently. "Be a farmer. Live up to my name. Have a peaceful life. Find a way back. Is your quirk perhaps specialised in capture and interrogation?"

He ignored the question, instead leaning forward. "Don't you have any ambitions? Desire for power?" The room temperature dropped.

He scoffed, hardly intimidated. "Maa, too much work. I'm retired. Why would I want power? The pursuit of power brings madness. It's empty." There was barely a pause before he asked his question: "What's the biggest threat in this world?"

The pro-hero held his gaze a little more before his lips twisted into a half smile. "For a ninja, you're very peaceful. And I've already said I'm not playing twenty questions with you, Hatake-san."

He waved his hand lazily. "It comes with age. Also, you're no fun, Hero-san."

Eraserhead pondered over that. "How old are you?" He asked suddenly.

He started at the non-sequitur. A huff of laughter escaped his lips. "I'm 45."

* * *

"Whatever did you do to deserve this?" Eraserhead muttered under his breath as he flipped through the papers. "The cosmos must hate you."

Kakashi heard it anyway. "They do," he said, propping his chin onto his hand and sighing dramatically. The hero's lips twitched upwards.

* * *

"Why do you wear a mask?"

Hatake looked away. "I have a very sensitive sense of smell," he said in a deliberately neutral tone.

Eraserhead shot a questioning glance at Ash Mystic. She hesitated. Although he spoke the truth, she sensed other reasons behind his choice. However, there was a dull throb of anguish surrounding the slew of other reasons.

It was personal.

She made her decision. She nodded. He moved on.

* * *

"What did you do just now to create that... Oppressive atmosphere?"

"Ah," Hatake said lightly, tapping his chin with one finger. "Hmm. We call it... Killing Intent." His eyes crinkled upwards. His smile was plastic.

Ash Mystic flinched, remembering the fear that had grappled her.

Kakashi's expression softened. He sent an apologetic pulse through their temporary mental connection. "Sorry."

"Killing Intent." Eraserhead's voice was flat. His fist clenched.

"It's a way of inciting fear by projecting your killing intention. One that is strong enough can freeze your enemies, even overpower them."

Eraserhead glared at the shinobi. There was a tint of red in the hero's eyes as he straightened intimidatingly. "Don't you ever do that on my students again, or I swear, Hatake Kakashi,  _I will make you regret it._ "

The shinobi appraised the furious pro-hero again. Kakashi wagered that the hero didn't realise he was asserting his own, watered-down version of Killing Intent. A protective teacher, hmm? So he was right and they were a teacher-student pair. The hero had let slip more than he meant to.

"I'll try not to," he finally said. He could relate, really. Eraserhead was someone who had precious people under his care to protect as well, and was willing to challenge an unknown, powerful person for them. He respected that.

The tension lining Eraserhead's expression lessened, and they moved on.

* * *

"Alright, last question. You've been skirting this for a while now." Eraserhead leant his elbows onto the table. "We've established that you don't have a quirk. Then, what's your powers and skills?"

Kakashi sighed. There was no way out of it this time. "It's called chakra."

"Chakra? As in, Indian religions, chakra meditation, and yoga?"

He floundered for a moment.

"I'm unfamiliar with that concept," he admitted. "Perhaps we're referring to different chakras? In my universe, it's gifted by the Sage of Six Paths - I'll skip the details. Anyway, I can manipulate it and use it for different jutsus. As for my skill set, my specialties are ninjutsu and taijutsu." Of course, he was also well-versed in genjutsu, fūinjutsu and bukijutsu, but they didn't need to know that.

The hero lifted an eyebrow. "Elaborate."

"Jutsus are ninja arts. They're... Probably equivalent to 'spells' here." Kakashi cringed visibly at that analogy. "Ninjutsu is, ah, very vague, actually. It's anything that's not taijutsu or genjutsu, mostly requiring hand signs and chakra. Taijutsu can be simplified to hand-to-hand combat, while genjutsu is the art of casting illusions."

"Specifically, what can you do with chakra?"

"The list is inexhaustible. Fire balls, elemental jutsus, body cloning, body flicker technique, shadow manipulation, healing techniques, sealing, illusions — it goes on."

Eraserhead very deliberately kept his posture neutral. It sounded very versatile and extremely dangerous. To be able to wreck damage easily, to move quickly and manipulate as much elements as they could — it was like an amalgamation of quirks, combined into one body. At least quirks were localised, specific. This? It seemed like a single person could do everything, as long as their skills were there. Should such techniques land into the wrong hands... "Is it something that can be learnt?"

Kakashi read the worry lining his face and understood immediately. "No, you need active chakra coils to do what I can. As far as I can tell-" or what Fujioka Mariko had seen, but he wasn't about to implicate her, "-none of the citizens of this universe have that." Their relief were palpable.

"What about weapons? Shurikens, swords?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What do you think?"

Eraserhead exhaled. "Just answer the question."

Smirking, he tossed a kunai onto the ceiling in an action too fast to follow. Almost instantaneously, the pro-hero had his capture gear wrapped around Kakashi, hair floating upwards and eyes red, but it was still a beat too slow.

The shinobi prodded at the capture gear restraining him, unfazed. "Yeah, kunai and shuriken are our bread and butter."

* * *

"I thought you've checked him for weapons?" Nighteye asked Tamakawa accusingly, expression fierce and shadowed.

"We did! I don't know how he managed to sneak that in, even past the metal detector," protested the Assistant Inspector.

The hero massaged his temple, his glare somehow deepening. "At least we can ascertain that we have his cooperation all along."

* * *

"We can charge you for that," Eraserhead growled. "How did you get that past the metal detector?"

His eyesmile oozed fakeness. "Genjutsu. Misdirection."

Eraerhead slammed his palms onto the table. Hatake remained unpertubed. "This is not a joke, Hatake Kakashi-san. Remove any other weapons you currently have with you."

Hatake tilted his head like a curious cat. "Maa, I won't hurt any of you. I wouldn't have been humouring you all along had I wanted to attack." Tugging at the capture gear, he eyed Eraserhead's hair speculatively. "Your hair is floating. Is that normal?" And here Kakashi was thinking that floating hair was a ridiculous notion.

"I'm serious, Hatake. Remove the weapons."

He smiled, but kept silent.

Eraserhead crossed his arms and leant back. "Is that so. Hatake-san, this is your last chance. Should you continue to be uncooperative, you will be charged with unlawful possession of weapons, lying to police officers, the unlicensed use of quirks on the police officers, as well as the attempt to attack. The jail time will be more than a year, and after you're done, the authorities and heroes won't take kindly to you, dimension-traveller or not. Need I continue?"

Hatake looked up at him through his lashes. "But I can't move because of your capture gear, Hero-san," he said glibly, blinking in an imitation of innocence, wriggling seemingly futilely against the scarf. The capture gear remained wrapped tightly around him, barely giving him movement space. The pro-hero didn't doubt that Hatake had  _allowed_  him the semblance of control.

The hero quirked his eyebrow up in debelief.

A few minutes later, Hatake sighed. Somehow manoeuvring around around the capture gear, three kunai and two senbons thudded onto the table.

"That's all?" Eraserhead prodded at them. Hatake shrugged. The hero held his gaze for a minute before he decided to let it go.

"Don't do that again." He motioned at the observation glass and Tamakawa entered to remove the weapons from the room. The interrogator and the subject were silent in a staring match. A few minutes later, Eraserhead looked away.

"We will require a demonstration of your abilities with chakra, Hatake-san. Where and when are you able to demonstrate it safely?"

"Ahh, must I?" He almost whined.

"Yes. Would you require a large amount of open space?"

He hummed thoughtfully. "No, actually. Here and now will suffice."

"Here? Without hurting anyone or trying to escape?" Eraserhead narrowed his eyes at him. "Do we have your full cooperation?"

"No escaping, no injuring, no deaths. No tricks. You have my word." He hesitated. "However, I'll request this to go off-record, Hero-san."

"Why?" His tone was sharp.

"I don't want anyone to find out the extent of what I can do. There's no telling what they would do with the information." Kakashi grimaced. "Top security means nothing to a determined person. You really won't want this on record." He would know, internal security leaks in Konoha always drove him crazy.

_I don't want to be a tool for anyone._

The room was silent. "Very well," he said, then tapped on his headset. "You heard him. Switch off the recording."

Nighteye must have agreed with him since all he received was a "done" in response.

"Alright," Hatake said, somehow managing to place both hands together despite the capture gear constraining his movements, "watch."

* * *

In a puff, he disappeared and reappeared on the table. In his place was a pen that clattered onto the floor, along with the capture gear. He charged Raikiri in his hand, the sound of a thousand birds chirping filling the room.

Eraserhead shot up in alarm, his chair toppling over noisily; Ash Mystic lurched backwards, gasping. Equally quickly, Kakashi dispersed the Lightning Cutter before it reached lethal levels. (Not that he could use it effectively without the Sharingan, anyway.)

He wasn't done. His fingers moved rapidly into motions too fast for the heroes to follow. He casted a genjutsu, weaving an image of a place he yearned, somewhere in another universe. The grass was soft beneath their feet, some scorched and trampled; the wind chilly, rustling the great trees of Konoha. Sounds of shinobi training and genin teams' laughter filled the training field.

Eraserhead shifted into a fighting stance, eyes wide. He swerved, taking in the cliff carved with many faces in the distance and the few shinobi passing by. "What — is this an illusion?" Everything felt so real, despite his logic insisting it could not be. His senses were reporting sights and scents he should not be receiving.

It took him a few moments to register his earpiece crackling noisily, an incongruous presence unaccounted for. "...ead, Aizawa, answer me! What's going on? What are you seeing? I'm going in there if..."

The illusion faded off, leaving the pro-hero staring at nothing. His student blinked in confusion, touching the wall as if to check if it was real. Eraserhead took a moment to regain his composure before speaking into his headset. "It's fine," he replied, voice sounding slightly off even to his ears as alarm rose in him. Where was Hatake?

The shinobi in question was standing on the ceiling behind him. He regarded the gaping pro-hero passively, hands in pocket, motionless. "Do you require a more thorough demonstration?"

Eraserhead activated his quirk; Hatake remained upside-down. Under the illusion, he had been at his mercy, yet Hatake did not try anything, as he had promised. For the first time in a long while, Aizawa Shota felt completely out of his depths.

Hatake let out a bark of laughter. "Your quirk, it's nullifying other quirks, isn't it?" he sounded amused and pleased at having figure it out.

The pro-hero's eyes turned back to black. "Yeah," he said, his lips tugging upwards despite himself, "and you don't have a quirk, so it doesn't work, does it?"

He hopped down nimbly, hands still in his pockets. His eyes crinkled happily. "Nope."

Eraserhead began to laugh, bewildered by the peculiarity that was Hatake Kakashi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The use of "Hatake" and "Kakashi" changes to show a slight shift in perspective (mostly). "Kakashi" — his own thoughts. "Hatake" — more serious and impersonal, the heroes' thoughts.
> 
> You can view it as Kakashi kind of making use of the heroes by gaining their trust and getting them to find him a way back home XD there's benefits from cooperation, that's why he's willing and less of a troll AHAHAH. (but he didn't give up all his weapons. He had one more kunai and a few other senbons with him XD)
> 
> Some of the things Kakashi said about power and revenge are canon.
> 
>  **Ash Mystic** : OC, a third year red-haired student who was called into the case for her truth quirk. Her name's Harune (暖希), meaning warmth and hope.
> 
> Really hope this chapter is okay. :/ I'm not very satisfied with it tbh. I wanna show the demo in the same chap (cuz I'm lazy) but it seemed a bit too quick and some parts seem jumpy. Idk. Thoughts? Comments? Who expected that? Too unrealistic/unbelievable?
> 
> Will reply comments in Dec, sorry! I really appreciate them tho :D Some took me by surprise or made me laugh XD


	8. They Kiss and Make Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ...just kidding. Wrap up for the "Interrogation Arc"!

"We'll conclude the interview now. Thank you for your cooperation, Hatake-san." Two hours had already passed, and the red-haired girl's quirk was no longer in effect. Just before they left, Hatake spoke suddenly.

"Ash Mystic, if I may ask you a question."

She paused mid-step, turning back quizzically.

"Is your hair naturally red?"

"Yes. What about it?" She said warily.

Hatake's expression was oddly nostalgic. "I knew a red-head, a long time ago. She was one of the bravest woman I've met." He tapped his fingers against the table. "Your hair reminds me of her."

She knew she shouldn't reply, but the question was out before she could stop it. "What was her name?"

His smile was one of sorrow. "Uzumaki Kushina."

Ash Mystic couldn't help but think that at that moment, Hatake looked impossibly lonely and forlorn, and so, so, tired.

* * *

Sir Nighteye was waiting for them with refreshment. "Great job," he said sincerely. The student blushed and murmured her thanks.

Aizawa-sensei turned to her. "Thank you, Ash Mystic. Are you able to make your report now?"

"Yes. Throughout the interview, I sensed no ill-intent from him. He's confused as well but is exceedingly willing to cooperate, despite his nature. He's quite careful and deliberate with his words and actions, despite what he tries to project about himself. He's definitely very intelligent. Some of his thought processes are too fast to follow. He comes up with decisions in the snap of time and acts on it so rapidly that I... I couldn't fully predict his actions, nor did I expect the demonstrations, despite the mental connection. I'm sorry, sensei." She looked down guiltily.

"No one was hurt this time around. Learn from it and don't let it happen again," he said.

A flash of self-doubt crossed her face before she straightened and nodded. "He seems like the sort that won't break rules but will find loopholes in it though. He's sneaky and cunning. I also note his very strong mental barriers, almost instinctual, which... is new," she confessed. "The people I've encountered, those with natural mental barriers aren't that forceful and defensive."

"It's something that's trained," Aizawa-sensei agreed. "It's rare. I'll teach you how to build and overcome them next time." It would come in handy when facing skilled opponents. Most would have ways to combat mental quirks. His third-year student wouldn't have encountered many with strong mental barriers at this point in time, but the more she progressed, the higher the probability of facing someone like Hatake.

She nodded, then hesitated again. "The Killing Intent..." She trailed off uneasily.

"We'll find a way to counter it. Perhaps it's only a Hatake thing," he said soothingly - or as soothingly as Aizawa Shota could get. Which, honestly, wasn't that soothing. However, it was enough to assuage her fears.

She exhaled slowly. Her expression smoothened out before continuing. "The questions he tried to skirt were those initially relating to his quirk - sorry, chakra - but once you reassured him that it was off-the-records, he relented. Overall," she said slowly, "I think he can be trusted. He seems to have strong convictions and moral. I don't think he'll go rogue someday?"

They mused over her words. "Thank you, Harune-san. You did well yesterday and today. Get some rest." He gave her a crooked smile. "Teacher's orders."

She basked in the joy of receiving  _two_  rare compliments from the pro-heroes. "Hai, Aizawa-sensei."

As she left, her mind flashed back to the shinobi. Harune hated this part of her quirk - the residual emotions of others that clung onto her.

He had thought her similar to another ninja with red hair although they were barely alike, both in appearance and personality. Uzumaki Kushina's image had flashed through his mind a few times — a rambunctious, fierce and cheerfully shinobi — but the memory was extremely hazy, the details blurred like seeing through a misty screen. It must have been years ago. It was tinged with nostalgia and regret, like most of his memories were, no matter how much he tried to suppress it. Despite his losses, he trudged ahead into the unknown bravely, looking back but still moving forward, picking up the broken pieces and never giving up.

Harune hoped that someday, she would be as strong as Hatake.

* * *

The moment his student exited the room, Eraserhead slouched down onto the chair. "So, the interview. What do you think?"

Without warning, Nighteye threw his Super Density Stamp Seal at him. He glowered at the younger hero. "Idiot, I warned you not to get baited by him," he berated.

He caught it easily with one hand. "It went well in the end."

"But still," said Tamakawa, "it would be seen as unprofessional."

"Trust goes both ways," the younger hero quipped in response. "Anyway, thoughts?"

"Isn't it weird that he only has so little weapons?" Tamakawa asked abruptly.

"You think?" Eraserhead said wryly.

"Someone as paranoid as him is bound to have more weapons," Nighteye added mildly.

The room was silent for a few seconds.

"...you think he's still holding onto more weapons, but he's not relinquishing them."

Eraserhead sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "I  _know_  it. But we can't do anything about it. He's very evasive, even for Ash Mystic, when he puts his mind to it. We don't have proof, and he can fool our senses and metal detectors."

"That's really against the law."

"We have no evidence. Also, a few weapons would hardly make a difference. He's too lethal even without."

They let the gravity of the situation sink in. "We can't do anything about his choices, right." It was a statement.

"Hatake still have the upper hand." Nighteye's mouth twisted in displeasure. "We don't have enough information. We can seemingly maintain our modicum of control, but honestly, had he wanted it to be, we would have been at his whim."

Tamakawa exhaled slowly as he pressed his nose bridge. "If that's the case, thank the gods that he's cooperative."

"He's cooperative because he wants something out of this. He wants us to find him a way back," Eraserhead pointed out.

"But isn't that what we want too? It's a win-win for everyone." Tamakawa shrugged. "And at least he's cooperative."

The room was silent. "At least he's cooperative," Nighteye agreed.

"Not that this isn't interesting, but what are we going to do about him?"

They surveyed each other for a moment. "We vaguely know what happened to the rest of the dimension travellers, but what's the official procedures for dealing with them?" Nighteye said, a tad uncomfortably. "I don't remember such obscure clauses."

"I'll get the regulations and protocols guide," Tamakawa sighed.

* * *

The book was enormous, dusty, heavy, and packed with tiny, font-size-9 words. Tamakawa flipped through the thick tome while sneezing intermittently. A look of frustration crossed his face. "I can't find the protocol for such a specific case," Tamakawa groused. "Why are there protocols for fire-breathing dragons and alien invasions, but not for dimension-travellers? Are they serious?"

"Tatsuma Ryuko's quirk transforms her into a dragon, even if she can't breathe fire. Of course there'll be protocols for dragons."

"But an alien invasion?"

Eraserhead shrugged. "What's the protocol for intergalactic travellers?" He asked, purely out of curiosity.

'"If they come in peace, let them stay in peace.' Stated here that it's still a work in progress."

"...that's not very helpful."

"Yeah." Tamakawa squinted at the page. "Oh, wait. Sorry, there's actually a whole article on interdimensional quirks and its effects."

"Do share with the  _class_ , Tamakawa." Nighteye said, smirking as he shot Eraserhead a side-glance. He glared back.

Tamakawa took a moment to skim through the text. "Section 39(4) covers the rules and protocols concerning time travellers." He began reading the relevant points. "Immediate isolation. Find a way to send them back immediately. Don't mess with the timeline unless imminent doom is guaranteed. Consult the quantum physics experts to decide the type of travelling and determine if interference will destroy the very fabric of reality. If yes, immediate termination of the time traveller is prudent."

There was a pregnant pause as they collectively considered the fate of the one time traveller Tamakawa found out about the day before. "Very nice," Nighteye said faintly. "What about dimension travellers?"

He took quite some time to find it. "It depends on how closely related the worlds are. Parallel dimension travellers are generally strongly advised to be sent back. However, if it's not possible, they can stay since their presence won't exactly cause the upheaval of the balance of the universe or something."

"Hatake's not from a parallel universe. He's from a different, utterly unrelated, one. The similarities are little."

"Strongly advised to find a way back, but not a problem so long as they do not pose a threat to the stability of the universe and the peace and security of countries."

"Are they granted citizenship and the same human rights?" Eraserhead asked.

"Yeah. With initial surveillance, but yeah. Oh, it's a case-by-case basis. Decisions to be made on the authority of a professional hero from relevant fields — with at least a ranking of 30 and seven years of experience — and/or by the Commisioner or higher authorities, or by personnel legally authorised by the above-mentioned positions."

They took a moment to ponder over their credentials.

"All Might is the Number 1 Hero and I was his sidekick. That counts, right?"

"Cheater," Eraserhead snorted. Nighteye ignored him.

" _Additionally_ , I have 10 years of experience—"

"Because you're old," Eraserhead interrupted, amusement glinting in his eyes.

"—and I'm Rank 29 in the Hero Registry." He gave the younger hero a stink-eye. "33 years old is  _not_  old."

"I'm seven years younger."

"I'm in my  _prime_ , you inexperienced juvenile. What do you even have that meets the criteria?" He said half challengingly, half teasingly.

"I'm from a relevant field," Eraserhead countered. "...and Tamakawa brought me in. He's authorised, so I am too, by extension."

"Don't drag me into your petty argument," the police officer muttered from the side. "Anyway," he said more loudly, "we should just call the Superintendant and inform her to inform the Commisioner-General."

Eraserhead sighed as he retrieved his phone. "No need. I'll contact the Chief directly."

"You have the Commisioner-General's phone number?" Tamakawa asked incredulously.

"Surprised that an underground, juvenile hero has it?" He said dryly. Nighteye chuckled softly. "We came into contact a few times before. It's for the utmost emergencies."

Tamakawa gaped.

Eraserhead dialled the number. "Chief Tsuragamae-sama," they heard him say as he exited the room, "it's Eraserhead. Do you have a moment?"

* * *

"So?" Nighteye asked expectantly once he came back in.

Eraserhead's expression was unreadable. "The Chief wants to view all related reports and files, but..."

"But?" Tamakawa asked, slightly apprehensive.

The hero grinned. "The decisions can be made at our own discretion."

For someone who didn't do anything, Nighteye looked extremely smug.

* * *

"I'll get his papers ready," Tamakawa finally said once he got over his initial surprise.

Nighteye nodded thoughtfully. "We'll mark his file as highly classified, keep the public reports as brief as possible, pass his quirk off as energy manipulation, and write him in as an unregistered citizen from one of the hidden villages. The Hidden Fushō Village?"

"Nah, the Hidden Tōkai Village is more hidden.*" They cracked a smile. "Selected heroes will be informed. We'll source for dimension-hopping quirks as well. Nighteye, do you have the contacts?"

"Already on it, Eraser."

"Thank you,  _Super Office Worker_ ," Eraserhead teased and dodged another Super Density Stamp Seal thrown his way. It landed on the table behind with a thud, leaving a dent.

"Say more and I'll make you do all the write-ups, Asshead."

"Please don't wreck the room," Tamakawa muttered as he filed the necessary papers. "Whose hero name shall I fill in?"

"I'll be the one in charge of Hatake."

"You sure?" The police man asked uncertainly. "That means you'll be liable and responsible for his actions should anything happen."

"Yeah," Eraserhead nodded seriously. "I know." He lifted a finger. "Ah, and the Chief wants periodical monthly updates and someone to keep tabs on him twice per week for a few months. Unfortunately, Nighteye has his agency to run, and I'm busy as a new teacher at UA." Both turned to Tamakawa expectantly.

"Yeah," Tamakawa replied absently, still filling the papers. He froze, head coming up cautiously. "Wait, why are both of you looking at me like that?"

"What do you think?" Nighteye asked innocently.

He groaned. "Oh come on, really?"

Their sadistically gleeful grins were almost identical.

* * *

"You know, I'm actually glad we didn't record his, hmm, 'quirk'."

He grunted as he focused on applying his eye drops.

"What did you see anyway? Your reaction was unexpected."

Eraserhead closed his eyes. The sounds of laughter and friendly sparring echoed in his mind. "A peaceful village, in another time and space."

* * *

"Must I visit him twice per week? Really? He probably dislikes me!"

"Perhaps he'll grow on you, and you can exploit his brains and get him to solve cold cases for you."

"The security clearance will be crazy!"

"C'mon, it'll be worth it. He's not bad."

"He said he prefers dogs! Dogs!"

"Don't forget your monthly reports," Nighteye interrupted, "we'll like to view them too."

"Why don't  _you_  check on him every month instead," he said petulantly. Eraserhead turned to face him squarely.

"Tamakawa-san," he said solemnly, placing both hands on his shoulder.

The police officer gulped. "Yes?"

"You know I have immense trust in you."

"Really?" His squeaked before he quickly covered it with a cough. Nighteye smiled behind his hand. "I mean, yes, I know that?"

"And this is an important job."

"So...?"

The pro-hero nodded, giving him a thumbs up. His expression remained serious. "Do your best."

"Hey, that's not an answer! That's cheating! Eraserhead, hey, come back!"

* * *

Eraserhead checked his watch. "I'm meeting up with Hizashi later. Want to grab a quick bite with us?"

"Nah, I need to go back the office. Bubble Girl left me some files that require reviewing by tomorrow."

"Ah, the life of a pro-hero with sidekicks, running his own office. How does it feel to go from being a sidekick to having sidekicks?" Aizawa teased.

"I'm going to side kick your ass someday, brat. That'll teach you respect."

* * *

They revisited Hatake at eight, this time with Nighteye leading the conversation.

"Good morning, Hatake-san. I'm Sir Nighteye, the other hero working on your case. We'll give you a quick debrief before letting you off today."

They covered the basics: what his records would read, what the higher authorities would know, the rules and laws, the next course of action as well as the surveillance he would be under.

"Don't you have a database of quirks?"

"It's not that easy," said Nighteye. "And actually, we don't. It's a work in progress."

Hatake pursed his lips. "Oh. Well, that's ineffective."

Tamakawa's ears flattened against his head. "The database is still being put together by the police research force, but it might take a few more years to get a comprehensive study and record."

The look Hatake shot him could almost be said to be apologetic.

They covered the rest of the legalities with him. "While you technically don't have a quirk, your chakra will be treated as one now, under the name 'energy manipulation'." He ignored Hatake's whine of 'that's  _my_  idea'. "That means—"

"—following the laws and not using any chakra in public. Also, I'm not to tell anyone about my circumstances." The shinobi recited as he ticked each off his fingers. "Predictable. Anything else?"

Nighteye looked torn between half amused and half annoyed before his expression settled into his typical glare. It was ruined by his upturned lips. "That's all. Just be subtle." He tossed two name cards towards Hatake. The shinobi caught it easily.

"These are our hero contact numbers. We may need to call you in to learn more about your universe. And behind," he motioned Hatake to flip over his card, where there was another number scribbled behind, "is my personal phone number."

Hatake wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Maa, are you hitting on me, Sir Nighteye?"

Eraserhead snorted. Tamakawa looked like he just wanted to die.

"Ugh, nah, you aren't my type." Nighteye grinned. "However, I'll welcome a detailed discussion on quirks, dimension theories, and our respective worlds with you. Give me a call if you're interested."

Hatake regarded him keenly. "An information exchange?"

Nighteye inclined his head in response.

This time, Hatake's smile was sincere. "I will. Thank you." He turned to the other man, his tone adopting a teasing lilt. "What about you, Eraserhead? Do I get your name and number too?"

Eraserhead gave his signature half-awake, teeth-baring smile. "Hitting on me now, Hatake-san?"

"It's called being polite." A beat later, he added, "and I'm not interested. My students are older than you, brat."

The hero eyed him contemplatively. Finally, he stretched out a hand. "Aizawa Shota."

Hatake stood and grasped his palm firmly. His smile was pleasant, crinkling the corner of his eyes in a genuine manner. "Hatake Kakashi. It's nice to meet you, Aizawa-san."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *"Hidden Hidden (Tōkai) Village" is more hidden than the "Hidden Unknown (Fushō) Village".
> 
> Section 39(4) - Page 394. Anyone noticed that? XD (btw idk anything about laws and stuff so pls correct me if i got anything wrong!)
> 
>  **Tatsuma Ryūko:** canon character, also known as the "Dragoon Hero Ryukyu".  
>  **Tsuragamae Kenji:** canon character (the dog-man), Chief of the Police Force.
> 
> If you're confused by the rank terms (sorry, I tried):  
> -Commissioner-General is essentially the Chief of the Police Force (highest rank). That's Tsuragamae Kenji.  
> -Superintendant is in charge of a (small/medium) Police Station. Tamakawa answers to the unnamed Superintendant in the Nishi Police Station. She's an OC to bridge the rank gaps, and might appear laaaaaater on. Who knows~
> 
> That's all! what do you think? too anticlimactic? :P comments please!


	9. Amateur Criminals Strike Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The obligatory bank robbery cliche

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand i'm back! i swear im supposed to be more free after As but it seems like i have more programs what is this sorcery
> 
> anyway! enjoy!

Fujioka Mariko warmed her hands with her steaming cup of matcha as she watched the television. The fervent confessions of the protagonist to her love interest was barely audible, the occasional loud crickets sometimes muffling the television. Her husband was huddled close to her, snoring into his pillow.

The weather was growing hot as summer approached, but the nights were still cool enough for a cup of tea. She blew at it gently, wondering when Kakashi-kun would be back. Poor man seemed so lonely and out-of-place that Mariko, who had always wanted a child, couldn't help but mother him.

A police car drove past, loud and bright in the sleepy twilight hours of the countryside. Its headlights illuminated the gravel road, disappearing from her view as it turned. Then, it sputtered to a halt. A minute or two later, the engine abruptly started again before the police car went down the road it came from, its light dwindling into a small speck on the horizon.

The silence of the night resumed as if it were never disrupted.

Mariko-san edged her way from under the covers, curiosity eating away at her. Her door creaked open as she slowly peeked her head out. It was too dark to see anything. There were sounds at the main door as she reached for the lights. It was already midnight; what was that about? Unless...

"Ah, Mariko-san, sorry, did I wake you up?"

She jolted and somehow managing to find the light switch. The hallway lit up: at the doorframe was Hatake Kakashi, one foot barely in. His mask was down, allowing her to see his sheepish grin.

"Kakashi-san! Welcome back!" She exclaimed, beaming. "Have you eaten? I thought you would take a few more days, I was so worried..."

"Maa, I'm fine Mariko-san, I'll..."

She didn't let him have a word in edgewise. "Nonsense, go to the kitchen, I'll get you something to eat!"

He protested, but she could tell that he was secretly pleased. His aura was glowing a warm orange, after all.

* * *

He received his papers and identity card a week later, delivered by Tamakawa.

"Thank you, Assistant Inspector Tamakawa-san."

"I'm going to see you a lot more often now, might as well drop the title," the cat-man said.

Kakashi surveyed him. A second later, he asked, "Want to stay for some soba? Mariko-san cooked extra."

He regarded him cautiously. "I thought you don't like cats."

"Maa, you got that wrong. While I do prefer dogs, I like cats too."

Tamakawa gave a crooked smile. It was the start of a beautiful friendship.

* * *

Tamakawa knew he was going to regret everything, look back at that very day, and curse Hatake's name. Oh well, #yolo.

* * *

Spring heated into summer as Kakashi slogged away farming. It was laborious, mindless menial work, and very peaceful. Twice per week, Tamakawa would drive over in his patrol car. They would go on a ride, talking aimlessly, trading stories and news. Occasionally, he would stop by for lunch as part of his biweekly routine check to ensure Kakashi hadn't yet run off into the wilderness, never to be seen again.

It was all very routine, mundane, and peaceful.

Too peaceful.

He itched for something to do.

* * *

Kakashi was standing in line at the bank, patiently waiting for his turn. The air-conditioner was a much-needed respite from the sweltering heat. Skin-tight jeans were traded out for looser, more cooling cargo pants and long-sleeved shirts were ditched in favour of polo tees that offered more mobility. His ninja pouch was still with him, a constant from his universe.

In his hand was another erotic book, recently bought - not as good as Jiraiya's, but eh, good enough. He knew he could use his smartphone to read, but ahh, what lovely deterrence the book was. Strangers took one look at it and skirted around him in a wide berth.

The Fujiokas had given him scandalised looks before giving up. As long as he didn't read them during meal times or working hours, Mariko wouldn't nag at him.

He was standing in line waiting to open a bank account when three masked men barged through the doors roughly, shouting aggressively and brandishing knives in the air. The leader's grip on the knife looked terrible.

"This is a robbery!" My, oh my, he didn't know that! "Everyone get down! I have a quirk and I'm not afraid to use it!"

Idly, Kakashi wondered why the details of the aforementioned quirk was tellingly missing. Perhaps his quirk was changing the colour of his hair anytime he wanted. That didn't make him any more threatening, although Kakashi conceded that he would also be  _technically_ correct. Who would be afraid of using such a quirk?

He patiently waited to see how this unfurled. The civilians gasped and began getting down. A short, green-haired woman hauled her protesting child down with her, anxiously shushing him.

"Where's the heroes? Someone get the heroes!"

They were seriously waiting around for a hero to save them? Speak about over dependency.

He went back to reading his book nonchalantly, until he was the only one still standing.

"Hey, mister! You should get down too!" A man in his twenties whispered to him, tugging his pants lightly.

He gave him a quick smile. "It's okay. I'll handle this."

"Hey, grey haired old man! Get down now, this is a warning!" The leader hollered. He had a constipated expression of immense concentration on his face. Kakashi's eyes twitched. He wasn't  _that_  old, and his hair was  _silver_ , damnit. He itched to burn the robber's face with a well-placed Katon for that insult.

The knife in the leader's hand trembled before very, excruciatingly slowly, made its way up into the air, wobbling every inch it floated upwards. The robber crowed triumphantly, finally getting a grip on his quirk and stabilising the floating knife. He angled its deadly edge to point towards him.

Ahh, so he did have an offensive quirk after all. A pity; he would have liked to see the robber with neon yellow and striped fuchsia hair. It would look stunning. As in, so-bright-it-hurts-I'm-stunned-such-atrocity-exists  _stunning_.

Kakashi looked up, eyes droopy, and pointed a finger towards himself. "Hmm? You're talking to me?"

"Yeah!" Leader yelled. "I'm tal-" Kakashi went back to reading his book. "-hey! I'm talking to you, old man!" The knife shot through the air towards him; eyes not leaving the page, he caught it midair with one hand.

The bank was deathly silent.

"Can't you see I'm reading? It's the climax," he giggled, narrowed eyes belying his light tone. He tossed the knife up and down, each time catching it without inflicting a single cut on himself.

The bank robber paled dramatically. A baseball bat was pulled out from the bag by his feet and hefted to his shoulder. He lifted his chin higher, radiating nervousness and bluster. In contrast, his sidekicks back-pedalled significantly.

"You think you're so cool, old man? I'll make you pay!" The robber roared as he charged towards Kakashi, oblivious to the multiple cowering civilians between him and the shinobi. The people flinched, some screaming as they tried to scamper out of the roaring man's way.

Kakashi snapped his book shut and slipped it into his waistpouch. In a puff of smoke, he shunshin to stand directly in front the man. He shoved him backwards with both hands. There was an audible cracking of bones as the robber's body snapped back at the sudden force. Immediately, he was sent flying towards the bank's entrance in the opposite direction.

The glass doors shattered upon impact, crashing down onto him. The robber didn't get up from the rubble of broken shards.

His two stunned sidekicks took a moment to react. The first one came wailing, knife raised high above his head, with Sidekick Two just a step behind him. Kakashi dodged the first swing. He grabbed Sidekick One's arm while it was raised above his head in preparation for a second swing and twisted it ruthless, forcing the man to drop the knife. Sidekick One cried out in agony, succumbing as the shinobi forced him onto his knees. Kakashi dropped his hold on One's arm and ducked just in time as Two lunged at him. Using his momentum, he swung one leg out and swept the robber's legs from under him. Sidekick Two fell into a groaning heap of uncoordinated limbs.

"Look out!"

Sidekick One had taken the opportunity to clamber clumsily to his feet. He came at Kakashi from an angle behind him, barely in his peripheral. The shinobi disarmed the knife in his possession with ease and punched him in the stomach. He skidded onto the floor. A second later, his own knife landed dangerously close to his crotch as a warning.

He gulped, whimpered, and closed his eyes in defeat.

Kakashi surveyed the three wannabe robbers, hands on hip. No civilians injured; no torn or damaged clothes; criminals apprehended alive; only the wall, glass doors and floor were damaged. Phew; torn pants would have been awkward.

"Tch," he grumbled, reaching for his book again. "You guys suck."

The police chose that exact moment to arrive. "Police! Freeze!"

He raised one hand in surrender without looking up from the book.

"Put tha — ohhh, come on. Seriously?" A familiar voice groaned.

Peeking over his book, Kakashi met the gaze of Tamakawa with his gun trained on him. The police officer pointed his gun away. Hesitantly, his subordinates followed suit.

"Yo," he said simply, giving an eyesmile.

Tamakawa facepalmed. "Hatake-san, you are a menace."

* * *

"—so cool, did you see that? Mum, did you see that? He took them out in a single hit, just wham!"

"I know, darling."

"He didn't even use his quirk!" The boy thought through that. "Much," he amended.

His mother ruffled his green hair, smiling nervously. "We're glad that he's there to stop them, ne?"

"Yeah, he's strong like All Might, but I wonder what's his quirk..." The boy muttered intensively under his breath for a few moments before a dreamy expression overtook his features. "Wonder if I can be like him too, taking down villains easily just by physical force."

* * *

"I didn't do anything wrong," Kakashi complaint for the thousandth time in the police station. At least they didn't handcuff him.

"Use of quirk in public area, fighting—"

"They were robbers, what was I supposed to do, stand and watch? And all I did was one jutsu. One academic level jutsu!" He could have burnt them down with a fireball for the old man comment, but nooooo. He was nice, he exercised self-control, and this was how the world repaid him?

Tamakawa sighed. He had been doing a lot of that lately. "Can you don't make this any more difficult than it already is? Just let me finish the report, damnit."

"Maa, but I'm not in trouble, am I, Tamakawa-san?" Tamakawa didn't even need to look up to know a pout adorned the shinobi's expression, as if he was a kicked puppy abandoned to face the cruel world alone.

"No; the public loves their anonymous saviours and citizens are fawning over your heroic deed. You're getting off with a warning this time round."

"I knew it," he said, radiating smugness.

"And stop acting cute, you're 45, for gods' sake."

"I'm 45 and  _cute_."

"Don't make me puke."

* * *

Policeman Sato and Ito cowered when they saw him, much to his amusement. Kakashi flashed them an eyesmile and a peace sign before he shunshin out of the Koban. Both police officers cursed his name as they cleaned up the pile of leaves he left behind.

Sato flipped his records incredulously. "What is he? He took out three robbers, just like that?"

"Remember he took out an entire villain organisation by himself too? With no recorded formal training. No UA, no hero academy. Just — how?"

"It's like he's not even human."

"He's not," Tamakawa said absently as he uncapped his jar of milk. "He's a demon."

"What?" They exclaimed unanimously.

"Yeah. Summoned from a pentagon and all that. In fact, he's  _the_  demon that the cult summoned."

Sato and Ito paled dramatically. "T-T-Tamakawa-san, you're joking, right?"

His eyes glinted mischievously. "Not at all."

* * *

When Tamakawa walked into the Kōban the next day, he actually reeled back in shock. "Sato-san? Why are there talismans everywhere?"

"To ward off ayakashi."

There was a long pause, in which Tamakawa pondered over what he had done. Or, well, started.

"I've also prepared a box of garlic, glutinous rice*, adzuki beans, salt, rosemary and iron."

Garlic, rosemary and iron? Sato was going all out if he even subscribed to other countries' lores and evil-warding methods. He wasn't pulling any punches.

Kakashi would be in for a surprise the next time Sato and him meet. Tamakawa felt a tad guilty. Then, remembering the amount of extra paperwork Kakashi had deliberately put him through, he immediately changed his mind. No, this was  _hilarious_.

"Tamakawa-san, do you think this holy water will w-ward him off? I'm thinking of spraying it if he appears here again."

He snickered. "Definitely."

* * *

Kakashi was hiding from the afternoon sun beside his lone straw brethren when he sensed a presence watching him. Their chakra was barely a ping to his senses — a civilian. Useless information when practically everyone in this world with a civilian with much lower chakra levels. It would require more effort to pinpoint the exact location of the person.

He looked around surreptitiously; whoever it was wasn't obviously apparent. The presence felt non-threatening, but paranoia also forced him to check it out. Naruto's pranks were non-threatening but that didn't make them any less unpleasant.

Leaning against the field scarecrow, he closed his eyes in a semblance of napping. Gathering his chakra around him, he casted them onto his surroundings like a net. Ah — there! Locating his little stalker, he turned around and faced the nearby bush.

"I know you're there," he said lazily. "Why don't you come out?"

The bush emitted a squeak.

"I won't bite," he added, tapping on his mask. "Come on."

The bush grew a pair of eyes that blinked at him. Slowly, hesitantly, a figure extracted himself out from the shrub, his messy tuft of green hair almost indistinguishable from the colour of the leaves. A middle-schooler stood before him, green eyes downcast and fingers pressing against each other nervously. Freckles sprinkled over his cherub cheeks cutely.

"H-hi?" He squeaked.

Ahh,  _kids_. Kakashi eye-smiled, giving the boy a jaunty, two-fingered salute. "Yo. What are you doing, stalking me?"

"I wasn't stalking you! I happened to see you and I live nearby and I didn't know you live nearby too. I saw you at the bank two days ago, you were  _so cool_. The way you took down the villains without even breaking a sweat is amazing! Do you train everyday? You look like you train everyday, and that'll explain the weird burn marks i saw at the edge of the forest, but then that doesn't make sense because isn't your quirk similar to teleportation? What's your quirk? Can you teach me to fight like you?" It all came rushing out, each sentence faster and louder than the other. The boy rattled it all in one breath then looked at him expectantly.

He blinked slowly. "Can you repeat that, ah, slowly? And maybe introduce yourself first?"

The boy flushed a rose red that reached the tip of his ears. "S-sorry! I'm Midoriya Izuku, nice to meet you!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *glutinous rice: to ward off jiangshi (reanimated corpse). They're reaaaally not taking any chances.
> 
> eheheheheh :'D our fav green-haired protag makes an appearanceeeee (about damn time). Hope that was okay! comments? :)


	10. Little Green Stalker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stalkers? Kakashi totally empathised with Sasuke now. No wonder young Sasuke was in a perpetual bad mood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello peeps! Sorry for the wait! I've been reaaally busy these past 2 months (huh, funny that I'm busier during the holidays...) and didn't have much time to write. Will reply to reviews next update, I'm so sorry! The next update will probably be in March - I'll be going overseas soon, plus it's almost CNY (pineapple tarts! :D), so I won't have much time to write/edit. Sorry!
> 
> I've rewrote this chapter, thanks to the help of greeneman42! :D He's a great beta, really improved on the chap! :)
> 
> Hope this chapter is alright. Enjoy!

_Shift 10_

"Midoriya-kun," Kakashi said slowly, "haven't your parents warned you about strangers?"

"I'm already eleven! I can take care of myself." Midoriya smiled, lips wobbling. "Also, I saw you at the bank. You're trustworthy! You took down the bad guys, after all!"

Kakashi wanted to facepalm. Midoriya definitely had no sense of self-preservation.

"Where are you from?"

"I'm visiting my grandparents. They're the Kamatas, they live nearby." He tilted his head cutely. So much valuable information, freely offered. Oh dear, Kakashi should talk to Midoriya's mother about this. "What are you doing here?"

"I work for the Fujiokas'. You're, ah, currently on their farm."

"Oh! Sorry!" He flushed again. "Mariko-obasan normally doesn't mind though. Am I disturbing?"

Yes, yes you are, Kakashi thought mournfully as he shared a glance with his straw brethren. "Not at all," he said. "What were you saying?"

"Oh yeah. Where did you learn to fight like that? It's amazing!"

"Thank you," he demurred. He made no effort to say more. The boy was not deterred.

"How did you do it?"

"They couldn't even hold a knife properly. It wasn't a challenge."

"Can you teach me to fight like that?" His eyes were earnest and eager.

Oh? That certainly got his attention. "Why do you want to learn to fight?"

"I want to be a hero too!" He punched the air with one hand.

_I want to become the Hokage!_

Oh. The moment felt like déjà vu. The tingling down his spine felt as if someone had doused him with a bucket of cold water. He scrubbed his mind free from such painful thoughts and refocused back on the boy, who was green-haired, not blond. "And why do you want to be a hero?"

"I want to help everyone with a smile, like All Might! I'm q-quirkless, but I study hard!" He punched the air excitedly, eyes gleaming. For a mad second, image of a blond, energetic boy overlapped with the green-haired boy in front of him. Nope, not today, not now, he thought to himself as he shoved those memories deep down, buried it under a mass of Icha-Icha scenes.

The silence has grown awkward in the span of time it had taken for him to clear his mind. The awkward atmosphere was made worse by the excited boy staring at him with those bright, puppy eyes.

"Is that so," Kakashi finally said uncomfortably. Why was the boy looking at him like that? Heavens, he had forgotten how excitable kids his age could be.

"So? Can you teach me?"

"Sorry, I don't accept students." To get another student would be akin to admitting that he couldn't go back; it would be settling down here. He didn't want to get attached, not so quickly. Much as it would be a nice change from this slow pace of life, he didn't want to risk it. Not yet.

(To accept a new student would be bidding farewell to his old students, to his universe, to-)

It was too soon.

"Ask someone else," he suggested, then teleported away before the boy could ask more from him.

Midoriya's expression turned defeated, before he brightened again. It wasn't a straight-up no!  _He has a chance._

* * *

Kakashi scowled and looked across the cabbage plantation. The other farm-helper and Daichi were with him as they tended to the cabbages. However, he wasn't paying full attention to the current task at hand. There was a constant, niggling buzz at the edge of his senses that was getting on his nerves.

He tugged at the cabbage with more force than necessary. Daichi gently placed one gloved hand on his arm to still his motion. "Kakashi-san, be careful, you're damaging its roots!"

Kakashi sighed in frustration. "Sorry, Daichi-san. I keep feeling  _someone watching me_  for the past two days, and it's distracting." The last part was said deliberately loudly as he aimed a glare at a nearby bush.

He was sure the squeak wasn't his imagination.

Daichi chuckled. "The boy has taken a liking to you, haven't you, Izuku-chan?"

The boy popped up from the bush, twigs and leaves in his curly hair. "I'm sorry!" He blurted out, before he was up and racing back to the Kamata's farm.

Kakashi knew how Sasuke felt now. He totally empathised. Poor Sasuke and his stalkers. No wonder young Sasuke was in a perpetual bad mood.

Kakashi wondered why this was his life.

* * *

The third time Kakashi spotted a green leech lurking at his peripheral vision on the same day, he decided that enough was enough. He was distracting, and much as having an admirer was flattering, Kakashi did not appreciate someone tailing him, thank-you-very-much.

The boy was squatting behind a bush yet again, impervious to the amused giggling of passer-bys. None had the heart to inform him that, despite his green hair, he was far from being inconspicuous. Kakashi waited until Midoriya was distracted and slipped away from his line of sight. He approached an unsuspecting Midoriya silently from behind, standing directly behind him and waiting for a few seconds to see if the boy had noticed his presence.

When there was no reaction besides a muttered "where did he go?" The shinobi asked dryly, "looking for someone?"

Midoriya shrieked, turning around so quickly that he fell off-balance and landed on his bum. He flushed. "I-I'm not!"

Kakashi looked down on him impassively and made no move to help him up. "Oh," he said. "You're certain you weren't looking for me?"

"Haha." Midoriya's voice was remarkably high-pitched, his freckles standing out on his red face. "Why would I be?"

"Why, indeed?" He echoed, rubbing his chin in a mock thinking action. After a while, he shrugged. "Hmm, anyway. Stop following me. I'm still not accepting students."

Midoriya hefted himself up, actions stiff and defensive. "I didn't do anything!" He protested.

The silver-haired man was already ambling back to the farm. "If you say so," he drawled. He raised his hand in a goodbye without turning around.

A few seconds later, Midoriya's shout rang through the air: "I'll make you change your mind!"

Challenge accepted, Kakashi thought to himself. He felt a chill run down his spine - familiar tingling sensation that informed him that his Bad Luck was at work again - and thought that perhaps he shouldn't have challenged the universe.

* * *

Kakashi's preferred training ground was a small clearing in the forest. While not exactly hidden, it was a distance away from the fields such that barely anyone chanced upon it. None had any reason to venture there as well. It gave him a modicum of privacy, and at night, it was a safe haven for him to use ninjutsu without fear of anyone stumbling onto him.

Kakashi often slipped away to the clearing to rest, be it to read or train in his idle time. He only practiced kenjutsu and taijutsu in the daytime; ninjutsu was better done in the cover of the night. With no more missions to keep himself in shape, no genins to test or comrades to battle, he could only resort to putting in more effort in individual training to stay in shape. And pass time. Menial weeding work was, well, extremely boring, and sparring with the occasional shadow clone was better than nothing.

He wasn't  _lonely_ , per se. It was just a tad dull.

It was dull, until a green-haired leech stumbled into his life. Midoriya was excitable, with ambitious dreams and high hope. Naruto - it reminded him of Naruto.

Naruto had remained obstinate even when Life repeatedly slammed the door in his face. He had fought and fought, carving out his own path until his hands were bloodied and bruised, refusing to give up until the Hokage cloak was wrapped proudly around his shoulders, and his family safe behind him. He didn't budge; instead, he made the world change for him.

Midoriya seemed to have the same "screw you" attitude towards Life telling him "no" and... Kakashi didn't know how to feel about that.

* * *

The boy seemed insistent in trailing him, even go so far as to follow him when Kakashi stepped into the forest. Obviously, the boy paid no heed to Kakashi's blatant "stop following me" comment. Sage, was this how Minato-sensei felt when he went to train secretly behind his back despite orders to rest? He was sorry, Minato-sensei. He was such an insufferable brat.

They were barely at the edge of the forest, but it was far enough from the Kamatas' to incite worries in the boy's parents, had they known where he was venturing into.

Kakashi should have called Midoriya out; he should have turned the boy back. The child had no place following him into the forest in a misplaced bid to convince Kakashi to be his teacher. It was dangerous, and the boy could be hurt, and this was a foolish plan. Midoriya needed more common sense. Kakashi knew that was the logical path he should have taken; he considered it, then dismissed it.

Instead, the shinobi let him follow. What was life without some danger? A shinobi's life, even a child, was fraught with danger. A hero's would be, too. Furthermore, Kakashi wanted to test if the boy was intelligent enough to "track" him. It had nothing to do with fondness, he told himself.

He slowly made his way deeper into the forest, all the while keeping his attention honed onto the kid - to make sure he didn't get lost - even as his eyes never once strayed behind. The boy followed, occasionally lagging behind slightly but doing his best to remain unseen while keeping Kakashi in his line of side. Sometimes, Kakashi would hear cursing as the boy lost sight of him and struggled to keep up.

Kakashi chuckled softly and deliberately stepped onto a branch for good measure. It snapped cleanly into two, producing a very audible and loud crack that was bound to be heard by his little stalker a little while away. Ah, there he was. There was a cacophony of noisy rustling and broken twigs announcing the boy's presence as he stumbled after Kakashi.

Kakashi blundered about loudly for three more steps - just enough to ensure that Midoriya could hear and follow him - before switching his gait into the more familiar, silent one of a trained shinobi.

The crickets chirruped.

Midoriya paused, clearly befuddled by the sudden lack of noise. He could still see the man, but if he closed his eyes, it was as if his hero was not there? How the hero managed to walk silently in the forest was beyond Midoriya's understanding.

He blinked, and suddenly, his hero was gone too. He gaped, turning around once, then twice, but still finding no sight of the white-haired man.

After wandering around for ten minutes, Midoriya gave a frustrated yell, pulling at his hair. There was still no sight of his hero. Finally, begrudgingly, he trudged back the way he came from, out of the forest.

Perched atop the branch above Midoriya's head, Kakashi grinned. He wasn't going to make it easy for the boy, but he wanted to see how far Midoriya would go. Perhaps he needed more common sense too, but Hatake Kakashi's perception on  _normal_  had always been a little skewed.

Also, this was fun.

* * *

The second morning, Kakashi once again allowed himself to be followed. He entered through a different path, ducking under overgrowth and skipping past most of the dead leaves. This time around, his navigation through the forest was quieter, only making a bit of noise when the boy needed it. Every time Midoriya was too noisy, Kakashi made sure to pause and look around purposefully. His eyes would sweep past Midoriya's hiding place, and the boy would give an audible sign of relief. The sounds of crackling leaves lessened after a while.

When Midoriya stepped on a particularly dry branch, creating a painfully loud crunch, Kakashi's head snapped up.

The shinobi could feel the boy hold his breath, keeping as still as he could.

A pause later, Kakashi shrugged and continued his "forest walk", fully transitioning into walking silently while doing so. He allowed Midoriya to observe him for another five minutes before pulling another disappearing act on the boy.

The boy's search was futile once more. Midoriya muttered furiously under his breath for a few seconds before coming to a decision. He propped his hands on his hips, nodded in determination, and turned to head back to the fields. This time, his eyes were glued downwards, and his actions were careful.

As the boy left the forest, his steps were slower and more deliberate. Midoriya stepped less on loud, snappy objects on the way out, motion still clumsy, but it was an  _improvement_.

From above him, shinobi's eyes curved upwards.

* * *

Lunch was at the Fujiokas', as per their daily routine. Neatly placing his shoes at the shoe rack, he followed the aroma of stir-fried vegetables wafting through the house to the dining table. Mariko-san was laying out her blue plastic placemats decorated with large hibiscus prints. She greeted him warmly, grey hair pulled back into a bun and sleeves rolled up to her elbows.

Kakashi moved to take the plastic container of utensils from behind her, only to be swatted away. "No need! Go check on Daichi, I've got this covered," she said cheerfully.

Never one to disobey orders, he dutifully ducked past the door curtain into the kitchen. Daichi was already transferring the vegetables from the wok into a bowl, scraping the last of the gravy down noisily with his wooden spatula.

"Do you need some help, Daichi-san?"

The older man placed the wok into the basin and wiped the sweat off his forehead with one burly hand. He smiled. "Here, you can take the dishes out," he said, wiping his hand onto his apron. "Thanks, Kakashi-san."

A plate of freshly-made croquettes and a bowl of stir-fried vegetables topped with garlic soon sat in the middle of the dining table. Daichi emerged from the kitchen with three steaming bowls of rice, and they dug in eagerly.

"I've heard that young Izuku has taken a liking on you," Mariko said, tone partially teasing.

Kakashi sighed. "Ah," he grumbled, "he wants me to be his teacher."

Both looked at him expectantly. Kakashi, unsure as to what they wanted, went back to eating quietly. He bit into the crispy skin of the croquette, the delightful flavour of meat and potato bursting in his mouth. They would clarify in a few seconds, he reasoned, if he remained silent.

Sure enough, a few seconds later, Daichi prodded a hesitant, "and?"

The shinobi raised an eyebrow.

"Are you going to be his teacher?" Mariko elaborated.

Kakashi placed his elbow on the table, chopsticks dangling from his hand. He pursed his lips slightly, eyebrows drawn together. "I don't know," he finally admitted. "I don't know if I'm ready for it again."

Sensing that this was a sensitive topic for their tenant, they hesitated, the desire to know more countered by ingrained politeness. Finally, curiosity won in Mariko. "You have taken students before?"

Kakashi gave a stiff nod.

"Do you... Do you want to talk about it?" She asked, peering at his face intensely. The shinobi shrugged even as his mouth twisted reluctantly.

"Okay," Mariko nodded. "It's alright, we don't have to know. You can tell us when you want to, Kakashi-kun."

"There's no pressure to become Izuku-chan's teacher," Daichi said. "He's an eager boy, but he can afford to learn some patience."

"But he's hardworking and determined, I'll give him that," Mariko quipped. Kakashi thought of the boy who doggedly followed him and found his lips twitching upwards. Those, he couldn't refute.

"You can wait until you're ready again," Daichi continued. "Take your time. In the meantime," he said as a slow grin stretched across his face, uncharacteristically mischievous, "won't it be a good time to gauge his capabilities?" Daichi chortled, shaking his head fondly. "Izuku-chan spooks easily."

Kakashi's grin was equally cheeky. "Maa, I know."

Mariko covered her mouth with one wrinkled hand. "Oh, poor Izu-chan. Did you sneak up on him?" She snickered. "More importantly, how was his expression?"

Kakashi's smirked. "Priceless."

* * *

After lunch, Kakashi decided that an afternoon walk would be part of his routine from now on. He informed the Fujiokas, both whom laughed loudly, giving him knowing looks and less-that-discreet mentions of the Kamatas.

"I don't know why you're eyeing me like that," he told them, eyes wide in a facade of innocence. They weren't buying it.

They told him the directions to the Kamatas' ("because you should know how to get to their house for future reference, of course") even though he didn't ask for it, before vaguely wishing him all the best. In actual fact, he had already known their address - and no, he did not stalk Midoriya; he was only making sure the brat reached home safely. Thus he set off while the sun was high and scorching, eager to find shade in the forest, where the temperature was bound to be a few degrees lower than the unbearable heat in the fields.

He sauntered past the Kamatas' farm, lingering just long enough to see a little green head scampering after him. Then, he headed towards the true destination of his walk: the blessedly cool forest.

If he felt a pair of eyes scrutinising his actions closely, more focused on his feet and stance than the direction he was heading towards, he said nothing. If he walked straighter, slower and more deliberately, no one would know but him.

_End of Shift 10_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I'll only reply to comments in March but they're really greatly appreciated! :)


	11. A Dance of Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello people! So sorry for the lack of updates, been swamped with work. Also, lost motivation for writing. But your reviews and support brought me back! Short chapter though - sorry, will try, but updates will be sporadic.
> 
> Bright side: results are out, I did waaay better than expected! Unfortunately, that also meant that I spent the last 2-3 weeks researching on University courses and all the write-ups,,, I was prepared for the worst outcome (ahem retake) so wheee sudden good results sent me in a panic of dear gods i did not plan for dis waht do i do now too many choices. Toss in a bunch of personal shit and travelling a lot, and ta-da, super busy! Am tired! Anyway!
> 
> Shoutout to ActionTReaction for the really nice PM that kinda reminded me of fanfic! Thank you, thank you so much for your concern! :') That was one of my main driving factor to get my shit together and post this. Also, thank you greeneman42 for looking through this as well!
> 
> Comments will be appreciated. Enjoy!

Their dance continued for the week. Kakashi was pleased to see that his stalker could navigate through a forest more quietly now, although it was still too loud by a shinobi's standard. Kakashi took different paths through the forest each time, and it was promising when Midoriya could track his way back accurately. Occasionally, the boy would mark the trees, muttering to himself as he worked his way backwards. He had a good head, at least, even if his stubborn streak and trusting ways were a bit too... Intense.

As a reward, on the Seventh Stalking Day, Midoriya was led to his secluded training spot.

Kakashi led him through the forest as usual, although this time, he used a direct path to his clearing. A fair distance away from his spot, he stuck a kunai into a tree. There was a quiet intake of breath, anticipation heavy in the air.

The next moment, Kakashi was up on the branch of a tree. It was time to see what the boy would do.

Midoriya approached the kunai cautiously. He tugged at it, but the weapon was embedded to its hilt and would not budge. He huffed, looking slightly put-out. He propped his hands on his hips and surveyed his surroundings, glancing upwards quickly.

No Hero in sight.

The boy turned around on the spot. He halted, and focused on the direction where the trees were more sparsely spaced. His head tilted curiously. A few seconds later, he ventured towards the area, kunai forgotten.

He stepped the clearing. The sunlight was more intense, the insufferable heat breaking through the shade offered by the trees.

Midoriya gasped. The trunks of the trees in the clearing were marked with scorches and deep gorges. He touched them reverently, tracing them.

Kakashi enhanced his hearing with chakra to eavesdrop on Midoriya's mutterings. "Fire quirk? Is that it? Fire quirk with enhanced speed and strength? No, but these look like they're made by a weapon... That dagger I found?"

A tree or two were splintered; the remains broken into pieces of wood piled neatly aside. There were scuff marks on the ground, the grass well-trampled and singed. Midoriya took it all in with wide shining eyes, excitement building in him and manifesting in sharp, sudden movements as he raced from tree to tree.

"This... Is... So cool!" He shouted, bursting out laughing wildly. He spun around the clearing and gave another huge cheer of "I found where he trained!". Kakashi winced; the image of an overexcited Naruto overlapped for a moment before dissipating.

Finally, the boy plonked down near the base of a tree, resting under its blessed shade. His hair was matted with sweat, perspiration sticking his shirt to his back.

Kakashi let him have a moment of peace. He grinned behind his mask, palming the kunai in his hand. Time for Phase Two.

The kunai thudded a metre away from the boy without warning. He screamed wildly, scrambling away from the kunai until his back hit the trunk of the tree. His eyes were wide and he trembled. "W-w-what? Where did that come from?"

"Maa," Kakashi drawled lazily, sprawled on the branch above him, "so you've found my spot, little green stalker?"

Midoriya screamed again.

Kakashi dropped down from the tree. He stood before Midoriya, arms crossed. "To actually follow me through the forest, huh..."

"I'm sorry! It's an accident!" There was a pause, before he asked tentatively, "h-how do you know I've been following you?"

Kakashi shot him a miffed look.

The boy gasped, squeaked, then clasped both hands against his mouth. He shook his head with mortification. "I wasn't following you!" He amended quickly. "I really wasn't... Much..."

Kakashi sighed. "How do you know you can trust me?"

He squared his shoulders bravely. "You're a hero! Of course I can trust you."

"Not a hero," Kakashi muttered under his breath. He tossed the boy a bottle of water. Midoriya fumbled before catching it. "Drink."

The boy did without questions, uncapping the bottle obediently and downing it. Kakashi sighed again. He felt too old for this.

"So," the boy spoke up again, "is this where you train?"

Kakashi grunted.

"How do you train?"

"I spar."

Kakashi's short answers did not deter the boy; instead, it seemed to further fuel his curiosity. He seemed to have an endless list of questions to ask. Kakashi always encouraged a healthy thirst for knowledge - but only if it wasn't aimed at him. "With?"

"Hmm..." Kakashi seemed to think for a very long while. He took joy in Midoriya's anticipation. The boy was bridling with excitement, practically vibrating on the spot, eyes shiny and sparkling. After a few moments of watching the boy sweat, he finally said dully, "With myself."

Midoriya stilled. He frowned - running a list of possibilities through his head, Kakashi bet, looking flustered. "How?"

"Maa, trade secrets." Kakashi winked cheekily.

The boy gave a frustrated wail. A fleeting look of dejection crossed his face before he bounced back again. "Can I know about your quirk?"

"Hmm... You can."

"What?" Kakashi's answer threw him off before what he said registered. The boy deflated. "Oh. So I can  _know_  what's your quirk, as in it's not strictly confidential?" Midoriya frowned, thinking quickly. "Can you tell me what's your quirk?"

Kakashi hummed again, tapping his chin in consideration. "I can."

Midoriya squinted at him. He made small growl, reminiscent of a cute puppy. "What's your quirk?" He amended

Kakashi's smile was smug. "Not telling."

The boy made another sound of frustration at the back of his throat. It still sounded like Pakkun when Kakashi refused to give him a treat. "Aargh! Fine! What about that dagger thing you're using?" He pointed at the kunai still embedded in the ground.

The shinobi turned around to look at it for a while. "What about it?"

"Do you practice with it?"

The shinobi paused. "Hmm. Do I?"

Midoriya waited. The silence extended past what was socially acceptable. "So?" He tentatively asked, when it was made apparent that Kakashi was not going to say anything else.

"So what?"

"What's it called?"

"What's what called?" Kakashi echoed.

Midoriya threw his hands up in the air, letting out a wordless yell, before shaking his head. Taking in a deep breath, a determined expression etched itself on his face. Kakashi  _knew_ , at that moment, that he would be seeing that determined, "do it or die trying" expression on Midoriya more frequent than he would like.

Scooting around Kakashi, he made his way to the kunai. Kakashi watched, but made no move to interfere. Bracing both hands at the handle of the kunai, Midoriya pulled it upwards with all his strength. The metal weapon loosened too quickly; losing his balance, the boy toppled backwards, kunai flashing in the air.

Instantly, Kakashi was behind him, one hand supporting his back to steady him. He quickly plucked the weapon from the boy's grasp. "Don't touch unfamiliar weapons. You'll hurt yourself."

Midoriya blushed. "T-thanks. Sorry." Curiosity quickly overran his embarrassment as he peered at the way Kakashi was holding the kunai. "How do you hold it correctly, then?"

The shinobi showed it quickly before sending the kunai flying through the air. It hit the tree trunk across the clearing, the clear thunk a satisfying sound.

"Wow," Midoriya marvelled. "What weapon is that called?"

"A kunai."

"Can I learn it?"

"No."

Midoriya grumbled, but for once, did not question him. Perhaps he was learning. "Can I watch you train? I won't tell anyone!" He added hastily. "I promise. Not a word to anyone else. I just want to watch. And I'll be quiet!"

Kakashi scrutinised the boy standing eagerly in front of him. Well, there was no harm in him watching... "On three conditions."

"What?" Midoriya asked warily.

The shinobi smiled internally; finally, some doubt! The boy did have  _some_  self-preservation, at least. "One: stop following me. Two: do not touch my weapons. Three: don't eat food offered you by strangers."

"Deal! Wait - what's with that third one?" He brought up the bottle to his eye level suspiciously. Half the bottle was already empty. "Did you - did you add something to the water?" He sounded horrified.

"You already drank half of it," Kakashi pointed out. "And no."

"See! You're trustworthy," Midoriya crowed. He pouted. "And you're not a stranger."

Kakashi's skeptical eyebrow raise spoke volumes.

The boy shuffled his feet, face a deep red flush. "So..." He scratched his head shyly. "You'll allow me to watch?" He said, a huge grin threatening to split his face into two.

Kakashi tilted his head, eyes forming little crescents. "If you're here when I'm training, yes."

Midoriya's screams were defeating, and the shinobi could already a headache building. The regret would be real and deep. He could feel it in his bones.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well I can't guarantee when the next update will be but I will try! Thank you for all your immense patience and support -hands out cookies-
> 
> I can't reply to all the comments (tend to only address questions/suggestions, so ask awayyy), but I read all of them! Love them! Each and every comment really brighten up my day :) In fact, they motivate me ;)


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